It's Just Not Fair
by ac-the-brain-supreme
Summary: Sho's life crumbled when he lost his love to his older brother. Now, still nursing his wounds the Academy students are released for spring break. Now real feelings and the truths that have been hidden shall determine which love shall previal.
1. prolouge

me: i was bored, therefore, i wrote this!

SYRUS: for once, it's not me and Jaden aren't together

me: nope, therefore, he is not allowed in here! and neither is Zane

SYRUS: how come Zane's not allowed in?

me: you'll see

SYRUS: but, who are you gonna torture?

me: (opens closet)

CHAZZ: (falls out of closet) OW! that hurt!

me: him

SYRUS: you think ahead, dontcha?

me: yes. now, chazzy-poo

CHAZZ: "Chazzy-poo"?

me: yes, Chazzy-poo

CHAZZ: Oo

me: what's wrong with Chazzy-poo?

CHAZZ: it's stupid!

me: (anger mark) attack!

SYRUS: uhm...start the fiction

**ac-the-brain-supreme does not own Yugioh GX. she's just a dork**

* * *

I cling tightly to my blazer. It's cold, sitting here by the ocean, but I have no where else to go. Ever since Onii-san and Aniki started dating, I haven't really been able to go anywhere without seeing them. And when I see them, a little bit of me is crushed. Utterly and completely.

They started dating a month ago. At least, that's when our friends and I first found out about it. I couldn't believe it. I was Aniki's best friend and roommate! I should've at least gotten some hint that they were going out. I knew Asuka was crushed. She had told me that she loved with Onii-san. That she had always been in love with him. Manjyome just stopped hanging out with us. I don't think he's homophobic. I think he just doesn't want to hang around with a couple, because he hangs out with Asuka a lot. I think he likes her though. Daichi didn't worry that much though. He doesn't worry about a lot of stuff now that he has a girlfriend. We were all shocked. After that whole Tanya thing, we all thought that he'd never date anyone again, but then he met a nice Obelisk girl. She's nice. Really smart too. Maybe even smarter than Daichi. It seems like everyone has somebody to love.

Everyone but me.

My love was stolen away from me. By my onii-san.

Yes, I love Aniki. I absolutely am in love with my Aniki. Wait, what am I saying. I don't have Aniki. Onii-san has Aniki. He's lucky. I hope Aniki is happy with Onii-san. That way, I can have some happiness in my heart. I can be happy for Aniki. I can. Really. It doesn't matter that my own brother is dating the boy of my affections. It doesn't matter that I cry by the ocean before I return to my dorm. It doesn't matter that I've accidentally seen them making out in my room. It doesn't matter that I've just seen a glimpse of Onii-san and Aniki making love. It doesn't. It doesn't. It doesn't!

I fall to my side, crying. For the second time that afternoon. It does matter that I can't be more than a friend to Aniki. I bet I'm not even a friend to him. I bet I'm just an annoying little side kick. Just around to make Aniki feel proud. Feel like he's better. Aniki doesn't need me to feel all those things. He can just talk to all the opponents he's defeated in duels. Or, better yet, he can compare all the people he's defeated, then look at all the people **I've **defeated. He'll feel really proud then. Or maybe not. Maybe he knows I'm a crappy duelist, but he just wants my hopes up, so it'll hurt that much more when I loose.

Wow...I'm cynical.

But, even if all of that were true, I'd still love Aniki. He was the first person to really treat me as a friend. The first person I've ever really thought of as a friend. I had friends before, yeah, but they always used me. Or, better yet, my first friend totally left me to fawn over a girl who wouldn't even look at him. I wonder if he's finally figured it out yet. For all I know, he's probably been laid by that girl. Last I saw of him, he was actually having a conversation with her. That seems like a stroke of luck to me.

I chatter my teeth as I curl into a little ball. It's so cold. We're on an island in the middle of the ocean. It shouldn't be this cold, should it? I really should go inside somewhere. Maybe Daichi would let me in. No, wait, he's at his girlfriend's for her birthday. Maybe Manjyome would let me sleep in his room. But he doesn't really like me that much either. I bet the only reason he hung out with me was because I hung out with all the powerful duelists. Now that I've become ignored by them, why bother hanging out with me? I can't go see if Asuka would let me stay with her. That'd be too weird. Not like I would try anything.

So that leaves me here. On the beach, in the cold.

I sigh again. Why did Aniki have to agree to date Onii-san? And if he did, why didn't he ask me about it? Maybe he thought it would be wierd for me to know that he was with Onii-san. Maybe...maybe he knew that I like him. That's why he didn't tell me. He didn't want my feelings hurt. He's such a good friend. A big wave crashes to shore and gets me drenched. I swallow some sea-water. It tastes nasty.

I guess me and Aniki's friendship has drawn to an end. He doesn't talk to me much, he doesn't sit with me in class anymore. We're never together. I guess I was meant to have no friends. My heart breaks with the final realization. I was meant to be alone. That is the way of the universe. I just wish I could tell Aniki how I fell about him. Or, rather, see him get into our room one night. He's out so late. With Onii-san, no doubt. That's what makes me cry, I think. I can't see Aniki anymore; I can't ask him about his day or anything like that anymore. I take in a deep breath and shakily release it.

"It's not fair" I whisper to the rocks nearby. "It's not fair. It's not fair. It's not fair." As I close my eyes for the night, a phrase pops up in my head. _Life's not fair._ No truer words have been said.

* * *

me: now, what's wrong with "Chazzy-poo"?

CHAZZ: (hog-tied with A.C. sitting on his back) nothing is wrong.

me: good boy! oh, hello peoples! is the fic over?

SYRUS: is it?

me: i dunno. depends on what the readers want. if i get enough good reviews, then i'll write another chapter.

CHAZZ: why does it depend?

me: cause this is originally a one-shot, but my mind can't take one-shots so it made up a story, but the story's off

SYRUS: by how much?

me: by a lot

CHAZZ: okay, can you get off me?

me: i dunno...

CHAZZ: (holds up 100 dollar bill)

me: O.O oooooooh... you gotta give me more than that

CHAZZ: awwwww

me: review please! and later!

**--ac-the-brain-supreme(?)**


	2. a new dorm

me: heheheh...over 2000 words, pre-edit, that's good, ne?

SYRUS: yeah...considering that you normally don't have more than 1000

CHAZZ: (still tied up) so...there's another chapter?

me: yep. after the first reveiw, which doubled as a death threat, i decided that it'd be good to update the fic! so, here it is! chapter two!

SYRUS: YAY!

CHAZZ: untie me!

me: this shall be lotsa fun!

**Cherry Romancer: (gulp) yes ma'am OO**

**Lorna Shadows: awww...i will!**

**QuiLeo92: really? it's too good? YAY!**

**Dia-chan87: i love him too. that's why he's miserable!**

**Hiruseki-chan: it made you cry? cool**

**Akane the Fox: NOOOO! that pairing is EEEEEEEEEVVVVVVVVIIIIIIIIIIILLLLLLLLLLLL! (takes out flamethrower) DIE EVIL PAIRING! (torches chazzxSyrus pairing)**

CHAZZ/SYRUS: OO

me: (huff-puff) where are my Midevil torture devices?

CHAZZ: "Midevil torture devices"!

SYRUS: i thought they were in your room

me: thank you. start fic!

**ac-the-brain-supreme does not own Yugioh GX. she doesn't own any Midevil torture devices in real life, thank God**

* * *

It was hard to wake up the next morning since I barely had any sleep the night before. I decided to just sleep a little longer than I should. For all I knew, I could've missed half my classes already. It made me think of the joys of sleeping in the warm, if not comfortable, blankets that we get in our dorm rooms. I bet the Ras and Obelisks have better though. Kinda maked me wonder why Aniki would invite Onii-san over to our dorm room when Onii-san's could be ten times better.

I look at the ground as I walk up to the Slifer dorms. I'm a bit embarrassed about what I'm about to do. I don't know how to phrase it, I guess. I've never been one to lie or talk really. Give explanations, tell stories, everyone else does that. Mom is really good at making up stories. Especially about me. Like, how she told the principal at my old school about how I couldn't do detention because a member of my family was in the hospital and I just forgot about what I was supposed to do. Mom always knows how to cheer me up when I'm depressed. Like, when I was really sick way back when I was still really little, I don't know how old I was, she would come to the hospital everyday with some sort of snack that she had snuck in, or a toy that she had found on the floor of my room, even though it still had the price tag on it.

I feel something furry against my leg. It's Pharoah, Daitokuji-sensei's cat. I pick him up. He needs to go on a kitty diet, because Pharoah's really heavy. That can't just be all fur. And it can't be really healthy for him either. "Gee, Pharoah, what have you been eating?" I'm not expecting an answer, which is what I get.

"He eats a lot, more than he really should."

I drop Pharoah and turn around. My heart's racing so fast, Secretariat would be jealous. "D-Daitokuji-sensei!" I stutter out, holding onto my chest. He scares me a little. He always seems so happy, and he never opens his eyes. I don't get that. How can he see? "Uhm...c-can I--"

"You weren't in class today" he points out as he takes Pharoah. "You want to come inside and talk about it?" I nod my head and am led away by Daitokuji-sensei. There are other boys in red jackets coming back to the dorms. I strain my little neck to see if Aniki is among them. I know he's not, but I can still have some hope, can't I? After last night, he's probably sleeping somewhere. Or with Onii-san. Or with their friends. Either option doesn't include wondering where I am, or asking whether I got a safe place to sleep last night. "Who are you looking for?" I am asked by the older man I am with.

I sigh. Why do I bother being hopeful. Hope doesn't change what really is. It just makes reality all that much worse. "No one, sensei."

The door is held open for me. I step inside with a smile that feels a little alien to me. When was the last time I smiled. Really smiled. I guess it was the last time Aniki talked to me. How long ago was that? A little over a month, I guess. When he and Onii-san began dating. My whole life seemed to end around that time, it feels like. I take off my shoes and put them in the little box by the door. Daitokuji-sensei takes his off as well. Pharoah has long been out of his master's arms and seems to be guiding me towards a little table near, what I assume to be, the study. "He wants you to sit down" my teacher tells me.

"Okay" I agree, and I let myself to be pushed to the table. Once I'm sitting down, Pharoah jumps onto my lap. I guess he's happy there's a guest. Or he doesn't like me and wants to cut off the circulation to my legs. I hear my teacher laugh. "I'll make some tea and we can start talking" he says. I nod. A little time to be alone. I start petting Pharoah. I think about what I should say to Daitokuji. _"I want to move out of my dorm because my brother and roommate are kicking me out."_ No, that sounds weird, and he'll ask questions. Maybe even talk to Aniki and Onii-san. That'd only get them mad at me, and I'd really be kicked out of my dorm. _"I want to move out of my dorm because Aniki's not around anymore and I'm lonely." _Even if I **do **get out of my dorm on that excuse, I'd only be paired up with another roommate. I don't want another roommate. I just want to be alone!

"So," Daitokuji-sensei says as he brings a plate of cookies, a mug of steaming water, and two mugs filled with tea leaves, "why weren't you in classes today? You missed all your morning classes."

So it's only noon? I thought it'd be much later. "Well...I didn't sleep in my dorm last night, so my alarm clock couldn't wake me up."

"Why weren't you in your dorm?" my teacher asks.

"I don't want to talk about it" I answer. I really don't. It's embarrassing.

"Well then, where did you sleep?"

I gulp. "By the ocean. On the shore, where it's rocky, and doesn't get the high tide" I answer shakily. The mug that's in my hand is shaking. My voice sounded weird. Like I was on the verge of tears. _C'mon Sho! You can keep it together._

"Why couldn't you stay with one of your friends, or your brother?"

I have to settle myself down a little before answering. "Well, I can't sleep in the same room with Asuka, Daichi was out last night, off of the island, Manjyome doesn't really like me that much--" heck, I'd be surprised if he liked me at all, "--and I didn't want to disturb Onii-san." I **really** didn't want to disturb Onii-san.

Daitokuji is looking at me weird. He's thinking about my lame excuses. But, they're the truth. I'm not allowed at the girls dorm past curfew and Daitokuji knows Daichi was out. I'm pretty sure he doesn't doubt that Manjyome nearly hates my guts and I'm sure he believes that I wouldn't want to rob my precious big brother of his sleep. So, I wonder what he's thinking. I think I'm paranoid, becuase I feel the need to block my mind of all images except that of a blank wall. Maybe being alone is getting to me.

I stand up. "Daitokuji-sensei, please let me move into another dorm!" I beg. I've snapped. I know it. I just want to know whether or not I'm going to be able to sleep at night and cry in my bedroom instead of by the sea. People can see me out there, and that's really embarassing sometimes.

"Why do you want to move out?" he asks me.

I sit back down. Tears fill my eyes and I stare at the cup in my hands. "I...I just don't want to be in there anymore. I can't stand it in fact. I'm miserable and alone and Aniki isn't around anymore. I...I just..." I can't finish my sentence before I'm sobbing. I hear Daitokuji get up and soon I feel myself being pressed into his chest in a gentle hug.

"Now, now, there Sho. It's okay. But, I'm sure that things aren't as bad as you think they are" he says in an effort to comfort me. I guess he is right. I have seen Aniki. With my brother of course. I cry even harder now. "Uhm...I don't think changing rooms is such a good idea. Maybe you could just talk with Judai. See whether he'd be fine about the move."

"B-Believe me, sensei, he'd be more than happy" I say through his shirt and my tears. He would be. No more worring about me not being in the room, if he ever did. He could bring Onii-san over as much as he wanted. The dorm would get really messy, but Aniki wouldn't mind that.

"Well, maybe for just a little while. Until spring break at least. Then, maybe after a little time to yourself, you can move back into your old room or decide to stay in the other room" Daitokuji said as he ran his fingers through my hair. I smile and squeeze him. "Thank you sensei! Thank you!" I shout as I jump off of him and run to the door. "I'm gonna go pack right now!"

"Wait, Sho, you should know that this time, the room is a single dorm. No one else will be with you. Is that okay?" he asks. I think I hurt his back, because he's standing weird and rubbing the area where my arms were.

I feel tsunamis of releif and happiness nearly crush my ability to speak. "Th-That's fine sensei! I think it's better that way, actually."

Daitokuji smiles. "That's good to know. Now, Sho, I'm going to let you take the rest of the afternoon off to let yourself move in and get settled. And if there is time left over, I want you to know that the class room has an open door."

I smile. I'm going to skip out on classes today. I probably won't be able to get all my stuff into my new room by the time dinner is ready, actually.

\\\\\

I look at my new room. It's so neat, which is how I'm going to keep it. All my stuff is in the drawers or the closet, right where they should be. I fall onto my single-story bed. It's going to be nice to not have the fear that something is going to fall on you. The windows don't look out to the ocean though, like my old room did. It has a nice view of the horizon though. I look out it now. The sky is a gorgeous shade of orange, tinted with pink and red. The setting sun. The coming of darkness. The birth of the night.

I should start writing again.

Of course, I never really stopped. There are plenty of notebooks that have the back half of them stuffed with little stories of love and acceptance. Of course, that was at the beginning of the year. Now my writings are darker, more depressed. I don't know how I got into the habit of writing, but I know why. Becuase it lets my feelings out. Feelings I thought too embarrassing and too personal for my mom or my cousin. Speaking of which, I need to e-mail Makoto on the move. Makoto is younger than me, and used to be shorter than me. Used to. She told me she's had a growth spurt or two since I left for Academy Island.

I hear my stomach groan out for food. I haven't eaten all day. I guess it's early enough for there to be food, but next to no one in the cafeteria. It's a nice thought, being the only person in there. I normally wouldn't eat in the cafeteria without Aniki or another one of my old friends. For a person like me, cafeterias are an unwelcome room filled with milk to be poured on your head and the reminder of how much of a social outcast you really are. Seriously, when the chess team won't even glance your way, you really don't like to be eating in a room where how popular you are decides where you're sitting.

I stand outside my new dorm room--I can't stop saying that--and dig through one of my red jacket's pockets. I feel cold metal and pull out the key, only to find it would never fit in to the keyhole that belonged to this room. I stare at it for a moment. I should put this back into my old room. I should also give Aniki some sort of message that tells him what's going on. He could care. I find the key to my dorm and lock up. I should return the old key now. If I go later, than maybe Aniki would be there, and I don't want to face him. I walk towards the stairs. My dorm is on the ground floor, Aniki's is on the floor above it.

Maybe I should stop calling Aniki "Aniki". I mean, I call him "Aniki" because he's like a big brother. But...Aniki hasn't been acting like an Aniki. Plus, it's a pet nameI gave to a friend. Our friendship is all but over. I turn the knob of Ani--Judai's--dorm. It's unlocked. I shake my head. It's always unlocked. At least, nowadays it is. I kept it unlocked, even at night, in case Judai was too out of it to find his key and unlock the door. Of course, for all I know, he slept at someone else's dorm room. When I fell asleep, he wouldn't be there, and when I wake up, he'd be gone. I never knew that Judai could wake up earlier than I could.

I open a drawer and pull out a paper and pen. I think about what I should write.

_Judai--_

_In light of your lack of being in the dorm room--_

No, that sounds stupid.

_Judai--_

_I've moved to another dorm. Deal with it._

That doesn't sound right. It sounds so mean. I don't want Judai to think I'm mad at him!

_Judai--_

_I think it's time we go our seperate ways._

I blush when I realize how much that sounds like we're breaking up. I stare down at the paper and think. Finally, I get something.

_Judai--_

_I've firgured that our time as friends is just about up and before either of us is ruined for the rest of our lives, I've decided that I should move out of the room. I've been tolerant about you and Onii-san going out, but when I saw you two doing it in our room, I figured I really couldn't stay in the room anymore. Please, don't feel like you've run me out. You really haven't. And Onii-san hasn't talked to me about this at all either. This is my decision and my decision alone. It was nice sharing a room with you._

_--Sho_

There. It may not be the best thing I could come up with, but it's not the worst. I place the note and the key on Judai's pillow. When I'm leaving the dorm, I take a second to look at it. I sigh and turn off the light before closing the door.

\\**Judai's POV**/

It's so late. I'm so tired. What time is it? I need to wear a watch.

I open the door to my dorm. Good old Sho. He hasn't locked me out. I guess he's not too sore about the fact he couldn't sleep in the room last night.

I stumble over to my mattress and flop down on it. I kick off my shoes and throw off my jacket. I don't think I should go over to Ryo's dorm for a while. He's sex-crazed and that scares me a little. I barely kept him outta me the whole time I was at his dorm. I wonder why I go over there anyway. Oh yeah, because his little brother sleeps in the same room as me and it'd be weird for Sho to walk in on us. Again.

There's something on my pillow. I knock it off onto the not-as-spotless floor that Sho keeps nice and clean. I feel a little guilty. He does so much. I'm starting to feel like a bum in my own dorm! Maybe I should do something nice for him. I'll think of that tomorrow.

"G'night Sho" I whisper before falling asleep. I know he can't hear me, but it feels better to say it.

* * *

me: okay...midevil torture devices, nails on a chalkboard, hillary duff's new album, cheaper by the dozen...any other forms of torture i forgot

SYRUS: (holding onto clipboard with Chazz looking over his shoulder) hmmm...Gone with the Wind?

me: oh yes, a little bit of Scarlette O'Hara complaining about how she will be alone the rest of her life will totally destroy this pairing! MUWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! oh...hello people! how are you? well, i hope you enjoyed chapter two!

CHAZZ: hey, A.C., how come you hate that pairing so much?

me: because, 1) i think you are one of the few straight boys on Academy Island, and 2) you're too horrible for my little Sy-Sy!

CHAZZ: (sigh)

SYRUS: review please!

me: see ya next time!


	3. Judai finds out

me: hello peoples! and welcome to the next chapter of _Nobody Loves Me_

SHO: yay!

JUN: UNTIE ME!

me: after the fic

JUN: you evil...GAH!

me: y'know, i think i like torturing Jun better than Ryo

SHO: really? why?

me: Jun doesn't call me a bitch

SHO: he doesn't...

JUN: does that mean you'll untie me?

me: no

JUN: ARGH!

me: argh?

SHO: Jun's a pirate!

me: he is! yay! (give's Jun a pirate patch)

**blue-demongirl: you get to see his reaction in this chapter. and thank you for the compliment!**

**Cherry Romancer: thank you. and it's okay. i get lots of scary reviews/death threats, so you have no need to apologize**

**QuiLeo92: i know. why do people make that a pairing! it's so weird! COOKIES! (pulls drawstring) enjoy the Judai torture! (Judai is hanging over tub of blood-thirsty sharks)**

SHO: ANIKI! OO

**Qu-ko: okay...when did i do that... flamer**

**KagomeGirl92: really? you like all my other GX fics? thank you! and i'm glad to know you like this fic as well**

**Lorna Shadows: then keep reading**

**PeonyLavish: ew...no...Banner's too old. and i'll ponder over the whole, "different pairing" thing. if i do that, it'd may have to be with an OC**

SHO: you may actually change the ending to a fic whose ending you've already setteled on? OO

me: most likely not. i said i'd consider it

SHO: okay. that's good. i like the ending

me: me too, Sho-kun. start fic!

**ac-the-brain-supreme does not own Yugioh GX. but she now owns a basket of cookies**

* * *

"Sho?" I call out before entering my room. No answer. I walk in, the place is a mess. It strikes me odd that Sho would just leave this place a mess. Maybe he's been busy lately. I haven't seen him for a while; mainly because Ryo's been pretty much forcing me to hang out with him. And to have sex with him. I really didn't like it the first time we did it, so I've been turning down every offer and "remembering" things I have to do all over the island.

I pick up a shirt. All the clothes on the floor are mine. Maybe I should help Sho out a little while I still have my freedom. Ryo thinks I'm doing my homework. He offered that I do it at his dorm, but I told him he'd just distract me from actually doing it. When was the last time I actually **did** my homework when it wasn't in the class before or in the five minutes we have before school starts? I guess when I lived on the mainland and I had my mom looking over my shoulder to make sure it was done.

I dig down further into the mountain of soiled clothes and soda cans that missed the wastebasket beside the desk. I don't get it. It's like Sho doesn't even live here anymore. I see glimpses of him in the hallways, but that's about it. I always get in too late to say goodnight to him anymore and he's just been leaving for class without waking me up. He's been getting up earlier than I have too. What he would be doing that early in the morning is over my head. As I continue my escavation, I feel something cold and hard against my fingers. It has a jagged edge on one side and a smooth, flat edge on the other. I pick it up out of the pile and discover it to be a key.

It kinda looks like Sho's key.

There's a knock at the door. The first thing that comes to mind is, _Kami, **please** don't let it be Ryo! _To make sure, I look out the window. I let out a relieved sigh when I see it's Daitokuji-sensei. I go over to the door and open it. "Konichi-wa Daitokuji-sensei" I say as I bow. "You wanna come in?"

My teacher shakes his head. "No thank you. Judai, you know that Spring vacation is next week, correct?" I nod. Then, he says something completely random. "So, how are your living arangements?"

"Erm..." I say, confused. What does that have to do with Spring break. "I haven't found any reason to complain."

"That is good" Daitokuji says. "You and Sho are both in agreement then?"

I'm still confused. "Well, I haven't talked to him very recently, but I'm pretty sure he likes it too." He hasn't complained, as far as I know at least.

"Good," he says, "then I shall just go over to Sho's new dorm and tell him that he can stay."

My eyes nearly bug out of my head. New dorm! When did Sho get a new dorm? **Why** did he get a new dorm? Was he promoted? He was wearing a red jacket last time I saw him. Did he ask for a new dorm at the beginning and did they just get him one? Why would he move and not even tell me? Before I can ask any of these questions to Daitokuji, he has said his goodbyes and has left. I look at the key that's still in my hand. I jump back onto the pile of clothes and start digging again. Soon enough, I pull a piece of paper out of the pile.

_Judai--_

_I've firgured that our time as friends is just about up and before either of us is ruined for the rest of our lives, I've decided that I should move out of the room. I've been tolerant about you and Onii-san going out, but when I saw you two doing it in our room, I figured I really couldn't stay in the room anymore. Please, don't feel like you've run me out. You really haven't. And Onii-san hasn't talked to me about this at all either. This is my decision and my decision alone. It was nice sharing a room with you._

_--Sho_

I have a cocktail of feelings going on inside me. One is embarrassment; Sho saw us. He fuckin' saw us having sex! Another is guilt; even though he said that I didn't run him out, I can't help but feel like I did. It's his room, too. Was his room, at least. Another is sorrow; he doesn't think we're friends anymore? We're still friends! I just can't seem to get away from Ryo long enough to prove it to Sho. The last was anger; it's Ryo's fault, dammit!

"I can't believe it, Sho's not gonna be here anymore..." I whisper. I gotta talk to him. Maybe I can convince him to move back. But when? Ryo told me that he and Sho are going to be leaving soon for their uncle's. They're gonna go a week prior to Spring Break. Actually, Ryo said that they were leaving tomorrow. I rush out of my dorm. I gotta talk to Sho **today**. Problem is...I don't know where his new dorm is.

\**Sho's POV**/

I listen to Makoto talk hurriedly over the phone. She's excited that me and Onii-san are coming over. You have to have no brain to know that.

"...and we can go on the new boat!--"

"You have a boat?" I ask. That's a shocker. I thought Makoto's dad was too sickly to keep up the maintainace of a boat.

"Uh-huh. It's a cabin cruiser" Mokoto confirms. "It can only sleep...mmm...three, four people, but it's awesome when we wanta bring friends over." I can tell she's smirking over the phone. "Speaking of friends,"--oh no, here it comes--"if you want, I can hook you up."

I told Makoto about how Onii-san is dating Judai, who she knows is the boy I love. "I dunno Mako..."

"C'mon Sho," she whines, "you can't keep hurting yourself like this. You may have moved out, but this entire thing is still bugging you! I can tell."

"Then what do you think I should do?" I ask. "You've never been through a heartbreak like I have."

Makoto's quiet. "You mean...I haven't lost a loved one?" Her voice is somber. I gasp when I realize I've said something wrong.

"M-Makoto, I'm sorry...I didn't..."

"S'okay" she says, but her voice is still very serious. "Daddy makes mistakes like that sometimes,"--meaning never--"and I forget once in a while,"--no you don't--"so there's no need to apologize." There's silence between us for a little bit. "Hey, Sho, I gotta go. It's dinner time."

"Wait," I say, "what do you think I should do? Y'know, to stop this entire thing."

She's silent. Then finally, "Leave the Island."

"Wh-What!" But the only thing that responds is the dial tone. I place the phone back on the receiver.

Leave the Island? I...I can't leave the Island! I came here to train hard and become a great duelist! At least, that's the assumption when you go to Duel Academy. And I want to be a good duelist. Makoto must be talking to my mom. Momma also asked over and over again whether or not I wanted to go to Duel Academy. I did, and I still do! There's no way to make me go back to a school where nobody likes me. Then again...I'm **at** a school where nobody likes me.

Before I ponder further, there's a knock at my door. I get up to see who it is. "Ah, konichi-wa Daitokuji-sensei" I greet. I ask if he wants to come in, but he declines politely.

"Sho" he says, "I have just gotten back from talking to Judai."

"Yes?" Does he want me back? Does he want me to stay in the new dorm? Does he even know? I hope he read my note. That was the only way for him to find out anyway.

"Judai said that he was fine with the arrangement. Therefore, you can stay in your new dorm." I swell up with relief and happiness.

"Thank you Daitokuji-sensei!" I say, trying not to yell. Daitokuji-sensei says goodbye and leaves. I close the door behind him. That's when I explode.

I jump around, dance, shout, anything to burn off all this extra happy energy. I've got my own dorm! I've got my own dorm! This may mean that Judai wants me to be totally out of his life, but I don't really care at the moment. The fact that I get to keep my dorm is good enough to make me act like a complete moron. After all my jumping and celebrating has worn me out, I flop down on my bed, red faced and panting. I let out a small squeal. I can't help but be excited.

I hear another knock at the door. I jump up to my feet and run over to the door. I'm smiling brightly as I open the door, but when I see who's on the other side, my smile disappears as if it had never existed. For on the other side stands my love, my former friend and aniki, Judai Yuki.

* * *

me: dun-dun-dun! what shall happen when Sho and Judai start talking?

SHO: what will happen?

me: uhm...conflict

JUN: untie me!

me: you're a man of little vocabulary

JUN: get this thing off of me!

me: (sweatdrop) anywho, review. and no flames this time, please

SHO: see ya next time!


	4. former friends fight

me: hello all, and welcome to the new chapter of _Nobody Loves Me_, sponsored by Jeep!

SHO: is it really sponsored by Jeep?

me: no. it's just fun to say

JUN: could Jeep untie me?

me: no way! Jeep's to busy selling cars!

JUN: Sho! Untie me!

me: if you untie him, Sho-kun, i shall send a million demons to ass rape you!

SHO:...ass rape me?

me: yeah. how else are they gonna rape you? you're a dude!

JUN: where are these demons coming from

PERSEUS: from me, of course. for I, Perseus, Lord of the Darkness, King of all Miscreants, and archenemy to the Hikari no Tenshi, control more demons than one can ever count! MUWAHAHAHAHAHA!

JUN: you made him, didn't you A.C.?

me: yep. he's an OC

(music comes on in background)

me: not THE OC, AN OC

(music stops)

me: now, lets get to the reviews

**dark red shadows: thank you. (head grows about three inches)**

**Yami'sPrincess4: thank you! i'm glad you like it!**

**Lorna Shadows: they're not gonna be getting together anytime soon, Lorna. And i'm not sure if Ryo would care that much. would he? (thinks) **

**Cherry Romancer: that was...tame? (gulp) oh dear...(types up rest of story in record time)**

**KagomeGirl92: awww...well, don't worry. i don't bite. unless you're a flamer. then i chew you up and spit you out like an old peice of ham:D and...actually...it kinda goes a little like that**

**blue-demongirl: yes! you're right. flamers are just envious pigs that want the talents of other, better, artists such as myself**

JUN: what the...YOU ARE NOT AN ARTIST!

me: shut it Jun!

**battlegirl15: yeah. he's just so darn cute!**

me: (squee) this is so cool!

SHO: what?

me: i dunno

PERSEUS: A.C. does not need to give a lowly mortal such as yourself a reason to squee!

me: Persy! That's mean! Sho is a very special lowly mortal and I don't like you yelling at him!

PERSEUS: yes A.C.

me: good boy! now, go torture Judai

PERSEUS: can i sodomize him?

me: sure

PERSEUS: yay!

me: and...start fic! Sho! don't try to stop Persy!

**ac-the-brain-supreme does not own Yugioh GX. in fact, she really hasn't even SEEN most of the new Yugioh GX episodes cause she's just a sissy**

---------------------

I...I can't believe it. He's here. Ani--Judai--is here. Okay, just keep calm Sho. He's probably just here to check up on you, not to ask you back or anything like that. Just to see how you are doing. Then he's going to Onii-san's, say goodbye, and then go on with his merry life. Personally, I'm afraid to know what a "goodbye" is with those two, but I don't care. I just want him away from my room.

"Ah, uhm, Judai" I say, eventually. My voice is surprisingly calm, thank Kami. "Would you like to come in?"

Judai nods absently. He seems a little...different. I can tell. Maybe it's because he's coming into my new room. Maybe it's the concept that I now have a new room. Maybe, he does want me back. Maybe it'll be okay. Maybe we can settle on an agreement. Maybe we can become friends again!

"So, uhm, do you like sleeping in a room of your own?" Judai asks as he takes off his shoes and walk further into the room.

"Yeah, but it's not much different than when I was sleeping in your room" I say, not really knowing what was coming out of my mouth. He turns to me with a sad look in his eyes. His chocolate eyes. His deep pools of brown that make me want to just melt through the floor. His eyes of such a bright brown color, that hold all the emotions he contains in his soul, that are ready to just show what is going through his head and heart at that moment. I just want to look into his eyes forever and ever. I just want to never look away. But I have to, if not, then maybe Judai will find out that I love him! And, it's not that him knowing is going to do me any good. In fact, that'll just make things worse.

"What do you mean by that?" Judai asks. It's not in defense, it's in curiosity. He wants to know why I moved out, and why I haven't really told him. I may have left him a note, but that's not really much. He might've wanted me to talk to him about it. Well, if he wanted that to happen, he should've at least tried to talk to me! Invite me to lunch, try to sit with me during class. Anything that'd make me think that he still cares about me!

"Well, uhm, nothing. It's just that, you were getting in so late, that it didn't really seem like you slept in there" I say with a smile. It feels weird, my smile. It's another smile that I put on to make people think that I'm fine. To reassure them that nothing is wrong. That I'm not feeling alone. That I don't care that I haven't been asked to dance. That it doesn't matter that Onii-san took something--or someone--that I care about. Again.

"Oh, well," Judai says, looking straight at me, "if you were worried about that, then you could've come talked to me if you wanted. I mean, we're friends, aren't we?"

"Well, if we were friends, then you didn't really treat me like one after you started dating Onii-san." I clap my hands over my mouth and spin around so that my back is facing Judai. Why can't I shut up? I hate this stupid verbal diarhea! It always happens when I'm nervous or excited.

"Sho?" Judai said. "Is there something you want to tell me?" His voice is calm, caring, soothing. He's not angry at me, he just wants to know what's going on. He wants to know if we're still friends. And if not, if there is still a chance for us to be friends again.

"Actually," I say, turning around. I should say, "No, not really" or "Nothing, I'm perfectly fine with everything in the world". Anything other than what I am going to say. "Judai, I want to know, why did you start dating Onii-san and not tell me before our friends or talk to me about it! I mean, if I started dating your elder sibling, then how would you feel. Especially if after we started dating, we just dumped you off of the face of the planet. Then, how would you feel if you saw the two of us having sex in your bedroom!"

"Y-You saw us--"

"That's not all. How would you feel if not only me and your brother just dumped you, but how would you feel if all of your other friends left you because one has a girlfriend, the other just plain doesn't like you, and the last is reminded of how she could never be with your brother every time she sees you! I do! I know how all that feels, and more, because not only has that happened to me, but it's happening to me now!" I take a breath, but I'm far from done. "Before I came to Duel Academy, I had no friends, Aniki. After I met you and Asuka and Manjyome and Daichi, I thought I would finally have friends I wouldn't have to lie to my mom about! But the second you and Onii-san told everyone you two were dating, every one just left me in the dust! Even you, Aniki, the person that was the friendliest to me, the person who was my first real friend! The person I care about more than anyone or anything in the entire world, the person that I love!

"You left me Aniki, for my big brother! How could you, Aniki? After all, we were best friends, weren't we? We were like brothers, weren't we? I thought we were closer, in fact, but I was wrong! I should've realized that you would've just left me for Ryo, eventually. But I was tricked into believing that you and me were friends, and look what happened! I was left alone in our room, with nothing other than my loneliness and my tears and my hope that you'll just walk in through the door and comfort me like you always did before! But no matter how much I wished and hoped for you to just come home and be the friend you once were, I was left waiting and crying for being so stupid as to believe that you **would **come back. I mean, after all, you had my brother. My perfect older brother who got to you before I could. My perfect older brother who gets everything and everyone that he wants, no matter how he gets them or who he has to destroy to get to them!

"Well, no more, Aniki. I have had it with the let-downs, with the crying over you, with wondering whether or not you're wondering where I am or whether you care that I'm in my room or bleeding to death in the middle of the forrest! And I want you out of my room right now!"

All he does is stand there, dumb-struck. My throat is hoarse. I was screaming. I'm hoping not that loudly. I don't want anyone else to know that I was yelling at Aniki that I love him and that he and my brother had done it. That would be both embarrassing and awkward. Eventually, Aniki walks over to where his shoes are and put them on. Then he just walks out of the room without a word. I close the door and press my back to it.

I never wanted him to find out how I feel about him in that way. I wanted it to be more romantic, like by the sea, or in our room. But, now, he knows that I love him, and he probably hates me. He hates me becuase I went on a tirade like a spoiled brat. I screamed and complained and just sounded like a little kid who wants their way and only their way. I guess that's why he's with my brother. Onii-san is mature, respectable, and just so sophisticated. Meanwhile, I'm a bratty shrimp who complains about everything. Maybe things weren't as bad as I thought. Maybe I was just overreacting. Maybe...maybe I've just compleatly ruined my only chance at being friends again with Aniki.

\**Judai's POV**/

He loves me. Sho loves me. And I'm dating his brother. I abandoned him for his older brother. Aw man, I really screwed up this time. I can't believe that I didn't notice it before. The way Sho was always by my side. The way he always supporeted me. I bet one of the reasons he calls me Aniki is because it's like a pet name to him. For the boy he'll never have. Because that boy, me, is dating, and doing it, with Sho's older brother. The same older brother that had put Sho down for their entire lives. The same older brother that seems to hate Sho with all his guts.

What do I do? I want to do something for Sho. To make sure he knows that I do care for him. But what? And how will that make anything better. For all I know, I could've ruined our relationship when I first told Sho that me and Ryo were going out. I guess I should've just told Sho that me and Ryo were dating before the others. At least then he might not feel as hurt. At least then he might not hate me like he does. I can't help the fact that he saw me and Ryo making out or having sex--most likely scarring him for the rest of his life--but I can at least do something that'll make him feel better. Maybe Ryo can help. He may be a crappy brother, but he's a brother nonetheless. I can ask him what might make Sho forgive me.

\\

Ryo opens the door to his dorm. A small smile cracks across his face. "Judai" he greets, "I wasn't expecting you today. I'm quite glad."

"Well, I was going to come eventually" I say as I enter his room. "After all, this is going to be the last time I can see you before you go away."

Ryo nods. "I'm sorry if this place is a little messy" he says, "I've been packing all day, so I let it get a little dirty." I look around the room. The Marafuji family must have some sort of OCD. This place is spotless, and Ryo says it's dirty.

"It's better than my room" I say.

Ryo sits down, and I sit down next to him. "Do you want anything?" he asks. I blush and say no. His arm wraps around the back of the couch. "So, what do I owe this most pleasent visit?" he asks. Ryo's voice is low and deep. It's somtimes hard to stay focused on anything when he gets like this. Not only becuase he's distracting, but sometimes he starts to paw on you.

"Well" I say, making sure I stay focused on why I came, "I just had a talk with Sho."

"Oh" Ryo says, a little surprised. He backs off a little. "What did he say?"

"Well...he saw us."

"I know that he's seen us make out Judai, and I don't think--"

"No! He's seen us do it!" I say. Ryo blanches. Apparently, having his little brother see us in all our animalistic splendor--whatever the hell **that** means--is as much a turn-off for him as it is for me. "And he's angry at me becuase he feels left out and I just wanted to know if there is anyway I can get him to forgive me."

Ryo's color is back to normal. He seems to be thinking about it. "Challenge him to a duel and let him win?" Ryo suggests. "I don't know. I haven't seen him angry at me or anybody else really. Sho normally keeps his emotions to himself. My mom would know, but she shouldn't be at home at this time."

I sigh. "Thanks Ryo." I try to stand, but he pulls me down.

"But you just got here" Ryo says. I can feel his breath run down my neck. I relax from it's warmth. Ryo wraps his arms around me, and I wrap my arms around his neck. His lips brush over my neck and I can feel myself turn to jelly. _Must stay strong...must stay strong_, I repeat over and over again. But no matter how much I say that, when me and Ryo start to kiss, I feel like my body has been sedated. And when we start to play tonsil hockey, well, there's nothing I can do from that point further but to let Ryo have his merry way with me. Right now, his way is just moving his hand up my back. Slowly, very slowly.

I feel myself becoming hard as his fingers trace out my spine. He makes me shiver and throw my head back. Then, Ryo starts to suck on my neck, trail the tip of his tongue up and down, and as he moves his light fingers from my back to my front. They trail over my stomach and tickle my belly button. It just feels so good. His warmth over powering me. His gentle touches turning me to jello. The scent of his shampoo finishing off the spell that the first two ingredients had started.

He picks me up bridal-style. He's so strong. But...somehow, the embrace feels like it's missing something. A little sense of security that it should have. Like when you're wrapped in a blanket or when one of your parents hug you. That makes me wonder. Does Ryo really love me? Like Sho loves me? I have no time to ask because soon, I have been stripped by Ryo's nimble hands and he is climbing on top of me, ready to screw me.

--------------------

me: and that's chapter four people!

PERSEUS: hehe...it's fun to sodomize people

me: yeah, for you that is

JUN: hey, Perseus--

PERSEUS: you have insulted A.C., therefore i do nothing for you!

JUN: DAMMIT!

SHO: A.C., why don't you untie him

me: cause a spazzy Jun is an awesome Jun, man! that's the only reason i like him!

SHO: cause he's spazzy?

me: yeup. spazzes are awesome! all my best friends are spazzes!

SPAZZES: huray for spazzing!

me: totally, man! kay, yall know what I like, RR ice cream, cookies, orange soda, and reviews. so...give me one of em!

ALL: later A.C.

me: later!


	5. Judai thinks and Makoto gets angry

me: hello all! how ya doin?

ALL: pretty good, you?

me: good.

JUN: why do you all answer her? don't encourage her! NEVER ENCOURAGE HER!

me: you're a meany poo-poo head, Junny-poo

JUN: and stop calling me--(get's kicked in head)

SHO: did you really need to kick him, ac?

me: yes. he was annoying. and i missed his duel with satorious, which actually makes me sad

SHO: why?

me: cause after joining the Society of Light, Junny-poo becomes more of a spazzoid! and spazzoids are cool!

SHO: --;

**Cherry Romancer: don't worry, i won't (crosses fingers behind back). and i like bipolar cherry. it sounds awesome, man!**

**KagomeGirl92: i know how you feel. i'm the only person in my family that likes anime, and i don't really want my family to watch what i watch. i don't know why. and for a while, i thought it was bad to like Yugioh because mostly boys watched it and i felt weird. anywho, Judai's feelings for Ryo are...well, like a first love thing. they might not last long, but Judai really does like Ryo.**

**Lorna Shadows: yes! that made the chapter awesome!**

me: now, i must hug you, Sho-chan (huggles Sho-chan)

SHO: you need to tell me this now?

me: no. anywho, start da ficcie!

**ac-the-brain-supreme does not own Yugioh GX. she wishes she owned some ice cream now, though**

* * *

He's standing there. In the corner. He's staring right at me. He's not saying anything, but those big, silver eyes tell me everything that his voice won't.

I'm lying next to Ryo in his bed. He's fast asleep, a hand on my arm. I don't want him touching me right now. That hand and that murmur of pain. I don't want them anywhere near me. They are just reminders of the fact that I'm the worst friend in the world. The fact that I slept with my best friend's brother right after I talked to him. And now, Sho is standing there in the corner of the room. He's ashamed of me. No wonder Sho doesn't want to be my friend again.

Why, oh why do you have to be here Sho. Go away, as far away as you can. Just, don't look at me like that. I know you love me, I know you're in pain because of me. I just...I want...

I don't know what I want. I want to be happy, and right now, Ryo makes me happy. But, you also made me happy. And, I do care for you too. I just don't know if I love you. And, you deserve someone who will make you happy and love you as much as you love them. Not someone like me, who's just...just a whore. Some low-down whore who can't resist somone when they want to fuck them. And that's just what I let Ryo do to me tonight: I let him fuck me. I've let him fuck me when we both had the same room. Both you and I know it, Sho. I'm a whore.

I cover my eyes, which are now producing tears. "Please, don't look at me. I don't want you to see me like this." I look through my fingers to see the wall that once had the image of my friend now empty. "Thank you Sho" I whisper.

\\\\\**Sho's POV**/

I see the boat that one of my uncle is piloting. One. I have a lot of uncles. Three, actually. One lives in America, my mother's home country. The other lives near Domino. I know it's his boat, but I'm not sure if he's well enough to pilot it. Then there is my late aunt's husband. He's still close to my mother, and he still lives near us. I'm guessing it's him. And I'm right!

"Kwan-ni-ki-whac" my uncle says in his crappy Japanese. He's an American and doesn't learn foreign languages well. Actually, all of my mom's brothers and brother-in-laws are American and have little to no ability to speak Japanese. I shake my head. "It's _konichi-wa_ uncle" I say in English. My uncle scratches the back of his head and smiled nervously. "Thank you" he says. I nod and climb on board. It's a nice yacht that my dad's brother--the uncle that lives in Domino--owns.

"Where's your brother?" my uncle asks.

I place my suitcase down on the deck. My uncle picks it up. "Onii-san is probably saying goodbye to someone" I say a little sadly.

"A girlfriend?" he asks. I blush.

"Uh...something like it..." I say. My uncle doesn't know that Onii-san is bisexual. And he definitely doesn't know that Onii-san is dating a boy. If he did, he'd most likely flip out.

Once I get my bags put away, I head out to deck to look out over Academy Island. I see if maybe some of my old friends are coming. I only see the high cliffs, the green forest, the active volcano, the white lighthouse that Onii-san likes to hang out around. No one will come to see me goodbye. Someone will come to see Onii-san goodbye. Judai will. And maybe Daichi and his girlfriend, if she isn't out cheating on him again. Asuka might, and if she does, then Manjyome will. But, they would all come to say goodbye to Onii-san. They might be saying goodbye to him now, for all I know. That could be why my brother's not here. All his friends and fans are saying goodbye to him before he leaves for an early vacation. Leaving me to wait on the ship and wonder what's going on.

Soon, I see my brother walking down the bridge to the boat port. With him is a suitcase and Judai. The two are talking to each other as they walk toward the ship. I feel myself becoming anxious. I don't want to see Judai again. Not after that fight. Not after I told him that I loved him in such a manor. I hope that Judai doesn't notice me.

\\\\\**Judai's POV**/

The boat's in view. And so is Sho, standing up on the deck. I stop right where I was. He's staring right back at me. Scenes from last night's sex with Ryo runs through my mind. I can feel my face heat up. A sudden hit of paranoia makes me look away and turn around. I try to make my mind go blank, but that does nothing. Just more images of having sex with Ryo pops into my mind.

"Judai?" Ryo checks on me. "Is something wrong?"

"Uh, nothing" I say. "It's just...I'm not ready to face Sho again. It's too soon."

Ryo nods. He understands. "I guess I'll call when I reach shore" Ryo tells me.

"Thank you" I say. We give each other a kiss. For a moment, I forget my best friend on deck. I forget my paranoia. I forget that I'm the worse whore in the world. All I know and remember is how good those lips feel. How warm and sensual. We pull away. I follow Ryo with my eyes as he walks away and up onto the boat. That's where I meet Sho's eyes. And I remember everything.

Those eyes of his. They're so sad. I can practically see the tears building themselves up along the bottom eye lid. I can feel his bottom lip tremble as Sho tries to keep the sobs down. I can hear the sniffles that he makes whenever he's sad or afraid. The ones he made when there was a storm and the thunder kept him awake at night. When he was standing pathetically in front of his broken little raft long ago. I look down to the ground. I remember. Before then, Sho wasn't as dedicated to me. After my duel with Ryo, he would cling to me no matter what. Was that when Sho started to love me? Right after I showed courage against the one person that Sho feared and respected the most. Now, Ryo took me away from Sho. So maybe, that's why it hurts him so much. His source of strength and courage was taken away by that symbol of fear and inability.

I look back up at the deck to find Sho is gone.

\\\\\**Sho's POV**/

I'm glad to be back on dry land. I'm releived that I'm away from Duel Academy. And I'm excited to be seeing Makoto again.

My younger cousin and I are as close as siblings. Makoto used to be a cute, little blonde who always wore blue-and-white dresses and skirts. But, over the past three years--since her mom passed--Makoto had been changing. And Makoto has told me that she had changed since I had left. I couldn't get her to send a picture, and she wouldn't tell me what she looked like now, so for all I know, Makoto's got three lip rings, jet-black hair, and wears nothing but black and other dark, morbid colors.

Onii-san knocks on the door to my uncle's large house. The house has semi-modern architecture and a lot of glass. He doesn't like the dark, and so almost everyhouse he had contained bright lights in everyroom and windows for walls. "Come in!" Makoto's voice yells through the door. Onii-san does what her voice said and opens the door. "Uncle Toru, Makoto, we're here!" Onii-san announces.

I hear a shriek of happiness and then a pounding of footsteps towards us.

Makoto heard Onii-san.

I'm hit with one hundred pounds of squealing girl intent on hugging me into an early grave. The two of us fall to the ground. Makoto gets up before me. "Oops, sorry" she apologized. "I didn't mean to knock you over, Aniki."

I sit up. I feel happy when Makoto calls me Aniki. It's from her that I got the idea to call Judai that. Makoto is an only child, but our fathers are so close that she could be a sister to me and Onii-san. Her dad and my dad are twins. Uncle Toru is older though, by ten minutes, according to my dad. My dad's told us stories about his and his brother's childhood. Uncle Toru was the insane brother with enough energy to power ten major cities while my dad was the person who always tried to control that energy. When me and Onii-san were little, we didn't really understand why. Onii-san always asked, and our dad always gave the same answer: "Because I was **supposed** to be the big brother, but Toru beat me to it."

When we got older, Onii-san and I figured out the real reason. Uncle Toru was born not breathing. Apparently, he was also born with bad lungs and little immunity to viruses and diseases. Uncle Toru tried to be the older brother, but one day when he and my dad were four, my uncle got really sick. We were told it was a miracle that he survived. Makoto claims that all the elder siblings in the Marafuji family--or anyone related to our family--are cursed. I didn't understand, so she went into detail.

Her dad was born sick, and he was the elder brother, even if it was by ten minutes. My mother's older sister died of unsuspected kidney failure, and she was related to us, even though it was by marriage. Our granduncle died in a car crash when he was still pretty young, and he was the eldest too. I had put up Onii-san as proof against the curse, but Makoto had told me, "Don't worry, Aniki, he will feel the curse soon enough." I don't know what she meant by that, and that night I went crying to my mom saying how Onii-san was going to die in some horrible way.

That didn't go over well with anyone.

Anyway, I still haven't seen any curse with Onii-san yet. He's healthy, he's smart, he's pretty conscious about what's going on around him. I don't think anything'll happen to him at any point in the near future. At least...I hope nothing is going to happen to him.

"Makoto...what happened to you?" Onii-san asked after Makoto had pulled me back up.

"You like?" Makoto asked. She really looks different. First off, her hair is cut much shorter. Like a feminine boy-cut. And she's nearly Onii-san's height. That makes me feel so much shorter. And she...well...her feminine figure really kicked in. Into overdrive. What most girls aim for from the ages of twelve to sixteen, Makoto gained in a year. Her wardrobe also seems to have changed. She's wearing little shorty-shorts and a loose fitting but very flattering green top. What? So I know what looks good on a girl. Sue me!

"You kinda look like you're putting out" Onii-san says. He took his bags and walked past my stunned younger cousin.

I can't believe Onii-san just said that! "Asshole" is what Makoto mumbles once she's realized what just happened.

"I'm sorry about that" I say to Makoto. I bow profusely as well. "Onii-san must be cranky! You know that he gets a little seasick when he travels as far as we had!"

Makoto stops flipping the bird to my brother's back. She turns to me. "I don't care if he just had his manhood ripped slowly and painfull from his body. That is one thing **no one** should say to a girl!"

I can tell right now: this is going to be one very memorable vacation.

* * *

me: yay! we meet Makoto!

SHO: why did Onii-san say our cousin looked like she was putting out

JUN: and can i get her number

me/SHO: NO!

JUN: okay! geez, don't have to yell.

me: well, you deserve to be yelled at. anywho, please, review. i would like that. and review my other stories. ya know, i have a NEW story

JUN/SHO: oh no

me: yeup, and it's called "Friendship?" it's in the original Yugioh section. you can read it if you go to my profile, though. c'mon, please? for me?

JUN: stop plugging yourself!

me: shut up!

SHO: end fic!

me: hey! that's my--(fic ends)


	6. ex girlfriends and late wives

me: welcome my f-fa-ACHOO!

SHO: are you okay?

me: a little sick is all

MANJYOME: serves you right

me: what does that mean?

MANJYOME: you were standing outside in the freezing cold for half an hour to go to a dance that had nothing but boys and a fog machine!

me: you would've liked it

MANJYOME: no i would'nt've

me: yeah, ya would! and you would've freak danced with your boyfriend!

MANJYOME: GAH! no i would not you--

---beep---

SHO: uh...s-start the reviews. AC! HIS LEG DOESN'T GO IN THAT DIRECTION!

**KagomeGirl92: i'll try that link! cause, like, i wanna see season three stuff cause, like, i already took a sneak into the future and, like, GAH! SPOILER!** _((sho becomes an obelisk))_

**Lorna Shadows: yes. and it's just cruel how he demeans himself like that. but still, i need to make Judai feel conflicted. and that's one of the ways i make him feel that way**

**blue-demongirl: don't apologize. i'm just glad you review at all. and your right, Judai should feel more conflicted! i shall torture him some more in the next chapter! and i don't think there are that many fics with Perseus in it. i actually think there is only one. pity**

**lifluvanime: yay! fun!**

SHO: AC! Don't! No! leave him alone AC!

me: never!

MANJYOME: HELP ME! HELP ME! L-LOOK! CLAY AIKEN!

me: where?! (runs away)

SHO: good thinking!

MANJYOME: (nods) ow. start the fic, please

**ac-the-brain-supreme does not own Yugioh. she does own a Clay Aiken cd. and it's spiffeh, man!**

* * *

..:**Judai's POV**:..

There's nothing to do here now that Sho and Ryo have left. Nothing but getting ignored by Asuka, weird looks from Manjyome, and talking to a Daichi whose put himself into seclusion because his girlfriend dumped him for the boy she was sleeping with. I don't get it. Daichi is smart, right? We all knew that Reika was seeing that Slifer on the side, but he was more than oblivious. He was blind to it!

Actually, I'm walking to the Ra dorm to talk to Daichi. He's been in a relationship. Granted, it was one that didn't end up very good and one that he doesn't want to talk about, but it was a relationship none-the-less. And I'm desperate for some advice. After all, I don't know if this is a bad relationship or something I should hold onto. And I can't talk to any female family members for a while because my mom and my aunt and my cousin are all out on a spa trip. Don't ask me why. They just are.

"Judai." I turn and face and Obelisk girl. She has long black hair and deep green eyes. It's Reika. I cross my arms over my chest. I don't want to talk to her. She hurt one of my friends, and I can't let her get away with that. "Judai," she repeats as she rubs her red-ringed eyes, "I...you...are you going to see Daichi-kun?"

I don't answer her. Why does she deserve one? Why would she want to see Daichi? She **did** cheat on him **and** break up with him. She crushed his heart! An image of Sho appears in my mind's eye. No, not now. I have to stay angry! If Sho gets into my mind, I'd get sentimental over Camula after she bit Sho.

"Judai," she pleads, "I know what I did was wrong. It's just...Daichi was such a gentleman, and I got frustrated!" She stepped a little closer. "I wanted him so badly, but he wouldn't allow it! I had a need, and it had to be filled, or we would've broken up a long time ago!" Tears overflowed her eyelids and flowed over. "And afterwards, I felt so bad! The next day, I told him, and Daichi was still okay with it! And...and..." She was near tears when I finally cave.

"F-Fine" I say against my better judgment. "I was going to see him anyway."

Reika's eyes grew. She smiled and hugged me. "Thank you so much!"

I shrug and walked on. She followed right behind me. I hear her boots step on the dewy grass. I can sense she's nervous as the Ra dorm comes into view. I can feel her hands mess with the fingers on the other hand out of nervousness. I can hear the words she's mouthing; what she's going to say to her ex-boyfriend. I can see the reddening of her ears and the uneasy sweat that is forming on her brow. Once we get to the steps, I can tell she's absolutely terrified.

I turn to see if she's following me. She's stopped dead, looking up at the yellow three-story building that houses the man she once cheated on out of love and lust for him. "Judai" she says, "what if he won't take me back?"

I sigh and shake my head. I want to respond, but she cuts me off. "I mean, he had to dump me for a reason! Daichi-kun's smart, so he must know what he wants right? After all...I mean...what if we go up there and...J-Judai!"

I'm confused. For one, Reika claimed that Daichi dumped **her**. Daichi claimed it to be the other way around. And just because your smart, it doesn't mean you have to have to always know what's right. You just had to have good judgment. I believe that Daichi has good judgment. But I could be wrong. I don't know why he would dump Reika anyway. If Reika is correct, than Daichi would really have no reason to. Not that I see. Maybe the fact that Reika cheated on him, though he fogave her, it was too much and he decided that Reika couldn't be trusted. And trust was the basis of any relation. Least, that's what I've been told.

"C'mon" I say, "it's going to be alright. Most likely, Daichi is in his room doing some math problem he made up."

Reika smiled. "Maybe." She followed me up the steps and into the dorm.

It took us two stair cases and three hallways to get to Daichi's room. Once there, Reika and I did nothing but stand there and stare at the door. I wanted her to knock. She wanted me to knock. Neither wanted to be the first one Daichi asked why we were there. But, to get our questions answered, I knocked on the door. Reika was biting her lip and playing with her hands.

"Don't worry" I tell her.

She looks at me. "Why shouldn't I? For all I know a **man** is going to come out of that door."

Unfortunately for the both of us, a man **did** come out of that door. To be specific, a naked man who looked like he hadn't slept all night. Reika was near tears because of who opened the door. I was scarred because it was Manjyome who opened the door. "Crap!" he yelled once he realized that Reika was sobbing in the hallway. He disappeared behind the slammed door.

I betcha he thought we couldn't hear them. But we did. And probably so did half the Ra students in the building.

"Dammit, why are **they** here?" I hears Manjyome ask.

"How should I know!" Daichi yelled back. There were bangs and crashes, and all I could do was stare blankly at the wall in front of me. I did not want to hear this. In fact, I never should have come. Reika is thinking the same thing.

"What do we do?" Manjyome asks.

"Uh...act normal!" Daichi responds.

"How!" Manjyome asks.

"Just let me talk!"

There was no more talking. Not for a while at least. But then, Reika and I heard the most disturbing thing in the world. It sent her running, and made me pass out on the floor.

The last thing I heard before passing out was, "Jun, where did my pants go!"

..:**Sho's POV**:..

"Thank you Ryo, but I can do this on my own," my uncle says to Onii-san. Uncle Toru is making us dinner. He's a pretty good cook and since this is our first night together--Uncle Toru was away on buisness for the first two nights--he decided to make us all a feast. Me and Makoto are fine with that. We love his cooking and the fact that he's making enough food to feed everybody in town. Onii-san, though, isn't as up to it.

Ryo and I know that Uncle Toru has just gotten out of the hospital for a bad case of influenza. And he looks like it too. His skin is paler than it normally is, his eyes have rings around them, and he has to wear a mask over his mouth to not get germs from other people or give people. Other than that, he's like his old self. But Onii-san doesn't want him around the food, even with the mask. Or, he's becoming more like Daddy and he's starting to be protective of Uncle Toru's health. Either or, Makoto is starting to get angry at Onii-san, again.

Since Onii-san insulted her not even five minutes after we got to the house, he's insulted her about two more times. The second was when she showed us the costume she made for a costume party that was during our second week at her house. She said there was a prize for the best-made home costume and that she was going to win it. Onii-san had responded to that by saying, "You're not going to win. It's almost obvious that you bought it." When Makoto showed Onii-san the sketches and the used fabric, Onii-san said that "anyone can get those materials, baka. Besides, it's not all that good of a costume."

And if he couldn't get Makoto even angrier, that same night, when she was making us dinner, he pointed out every little mistake. Considering Makoto cooks nearly all the time for everyone, this really set her on edge. She had yelled at Onii-san, "Well if you don't like it, starve! I'm not cooking for you for the rest of this visit!" When Onii-san pointed out that everyone else would starve, Makoto said, "I said **you**. I'm still cooking for Sho and Daddy." After that, Onii-san voluntarily left the table.

Now, he's trying to make dinner himself. I fear for us all. Because no matter how good he is at anything else, Onii-san's cooking is poisonous. And my uncle is hard-headed.

"Ryo, you're the guest. You shouldn't be making dinner."

"But you're sick,"--bad move--"you shouldn't be making anything."

"I've been sick my whole life, Ry-Ry." Makoto and I giggle at Onii-san's old nick-name. "I have a feeling that it's too late for you to be doing this."

Onii-san seems a little angry at being called Ry-Ry again. He insisted on that being stopped when he was six. "Maybe, but I think it would be better if you rested."

"What you think would be better for me and what I think will be better for me are two different things Ryo." Uncle Toru's blue eyes flash as he turns them on Onii-san. "The only time I listen to a sentence like that is if it is coming out of the mouth of my doctor, Makoto, or my wife. Not you, not your father, not anybody else. Do you understand me?"

Onii-san is determined to have his way. "Well, considering that one of those positions is empty," he says, making Makoto shiver with anger, "I believe that the next best person should be able to fill in that space."

My uncle, who had stopped playing with the rice for a minute by now, picked up the spatula. He's angry. Very angry. I try to slide below the counter I'm sitting at while Makoto looks for the nearest exit or phone. "Ryo," Uncle Toru says, putting the bottom part of the spatula under Onii-san's chin, "don't you ever say that in my presence again. Shira's spot can not and will not be filled. Do you understand?"

Onii-san stares at our uncle for a second or two before turning around and marching out of the room. Uncle Toru turns off the stove and sits down on a chair, looking exhausted. Makoto walks over to her father. "Daddy, are you okay?" she asks.

Uncle Toru smiles. You can tell when he smiles. Even if that opaque white cloth covers his face, you can always tell when he smiles. He pats Makoto's head. "Ah, Mako-chan" he breaths out. "Do you think pizza is a good subsitute for a home-made meal?"

Makoto thinks. "No" she says. "But tacos are." Uncle Toru laughs and gets up to go find the Mexican carry-out menu.

"I'm sorry about my brother" I tell Makoto. She turns her head to me. "Don't be" she says. "It's not your fault Ryo ended up a bastard."

I know, but...he wasn't like this before he came to Duel Academy. He changed a little, yes, but he was at least curteous to our family. But now, he's so mean. Ever since his second year, he's been mean to anyone who wasn't his friend or his boyfriend. He's even snapped and insulted me, though it was before he and Judai were even close to dating. Then, he just stopped acknowledging me all together. Tears come to my eyes and I start to sniffle. Makoto hugs me, though she's nothing compared to the person I really want hugging me. Because, no matter how much she tries, Makoto and me is like my Aunt Shira and Uncle Toru. Uncle Toru is never going to be able to replace his late wife, and I'm never going to be able to replace Judai.

* * *

MANJYOME: the only good thing about the intro was that i got out of those ropes.

SHO: and now AC is swaying to the music of her faveorite gay Southern boy.

me: ...what do i do when lighting strikes me...

MANJYOME: you go to the hospital

me: ...what do i gotta do when sorry seems to be the hardest word...

MANJYOME: don't say it

SHO: please review


	7. back home

me: hatcha! i gots the new chapter up! whee!

SHO: what're you gonna do to Aniki?!

me: uh...send him home...

SHO: really?

me: uh-huh! Judai goes home in this chapter and tells his mama about the shit going on in his life!

SHO/JUN: O.O

me: what?

JUN: you cursed...

me: uh, yeah. and when did you get out of your restraints?!

SHO: when did you start cursing?!

me: what's wrong with me cursing?

SHO: well, you don't seem to be the kind of person who curses

me: well, you don't seem to be the kind of person who likes to (explicit sexual reference)

SHO: (fainted)

**KagomeGirl92: thank you! and im glad the update made you happy! that makes me happy, which makes the rest of the worl happy! and yes! they do! which makes me so happy!**

**Cherry Romancer: O.O...i couldn't have done that better myself...**

**Yami'sPrincess4: why are people so shocked by that?**

**Lady Blade WarAngel: why, thank you**

**blue-demongirl: again, i ask why people are surprised to see that here. and thank you for the cookie! (eats cookie) and i will! for it is fun to torture Jun-kun!**

JUN: no it is not!

me: yes it is!

**LadyLove92: but the exciting stuff happens BEFORE they go back!**

me: Sho-kun? Sho-kun? Sho-kun, are you okay?

JUN: maybe i should go get help...i'll just leave the room and--

me: (presses button and large glass cage falls on Jun)

JUN: GAH!!!! (string of curse words that are too profane for general audiences)

me: (faints)

JUN:...start the stupid fic

**ac-the-brain-supreme does not own Yugioh GX. she also doesn't own the tickets to her boyfriend's homecoming because the school sold his tickets!**

* * *

I see the docks of Domino harbor slowly coming out of the aqua horizon of the water. I'm getting more and more thrilled, thinking about what will be happening over the next few days. Being back home with my mother, seeing my aunt, having my cousin ask me which tattoo she should have tattooed on her ass next. Okay, I'm not looking forward to that last one, but I'm really glad to be able to be back home with my mom. To smell the burning food she attempts to make. To feel the cold, hard cylinder of the fire hydrant in my hand. Pulling the triger, realeasing the flame retardant white foam over the ruined meal. My mom turning to me and saying, "Well, howabout some take out?"

I wonder how many warnings she's received from her landlord. I wonder how many nights she's gone over to my aunt's to have dinner with her and my tatoo parlor-owning cousin. I wonder if she's gotten a raise or gotten promoted. This is the only downside of going to Duel Academy, I can't keep in touch with my family.

I can see the throngs of people clumped together on the peir. I see a two women I know by heart. One looks like she's twenty or twenty-one; the other is an older woman with graying brown hair. I jump off of my seat and run down to the room where baggage is held. It's down the steps, below the level where people can get off at. On my way down, I'm witness to one of Jun and Daichi's secret makeout sessions. At that moment, Daichi was sucking on Jun's neck and Jun was trying to get Daichi to touch his groin. It's kind of like some of the make out sessions me and Ryo have. Only I don't need to make Ryo touch me, he does it on his own. I sneak by my two friends and tip-toe into the luggage room. I close the door and sigh.

Apparently, Daichi and Jun have been seeing each other since Reika first cheated on Daichi. They ended up kissing and that's when their relationship started. Secret dates, Daichi sneaking out to meet Jun in his room; they were even better at keeping their feelings away from our friends than me and Ryo. Eventually we had to out ourselves because of Sho and because some of our other classmates were sending us threats to out us if we didn't. Even go to the headmaster and claim that we were having sex, something strictly forbidden on school grounds.

I search for my old suitcase. It's under a pile of suitcases, making it difficult to remove mine. Eventually after a lot of tugging, and an avalanche of luggage, my suitcase is free and I escape with a bad headache. I look out of the few windows that are in the luggage room. The boat's finally docked and the sign-out people have started to walk down the plank. I feel heat rise to my cheeks as well as a smile. I squeeze my way past a couple of Obelisk girls going to the luggage room and run as fast as I can up the metal stairs. I bump into a few people on my way up, one of them being Jun, who had probably realized that people were going to start coming by where they were and got Daichi to stop his vampire impersonation.

I wait behind some people who decided to keep their luggage with them through the whole trip as they give their names and walk to meet their friends and family, waiting eagerly for the young duelists who left home to hone their skills. I give my name and run as fast as I can to the older woman I saw out of the window.

"Judai!" the woman with graying hair shouts as I run into her open arms. I feel someone else wrap their arms around my waist. I look down to see the younger woman I saw on her knees. "Hey, Mister Biggie," the woman jokes, "do you know where my tiny Judai went? He seemed to have disappeared!" I laugh and hug her head.

"Excuse me, Miss" the Slifer sign-out guy says to the woman who was stading up, "but may I have your signature?"

"Me?" she asks. Me and the kneeling woman smile.

"Yes, you. So you can take your son home" the man says, trying to stay polite.

The woman he is adressing to counts on her fingers. She seems confused, which makes this even funnier. "I'm sorry Sir, but I have no son. I have a daughter, but no son."

The man looks down at me, then back at the elder woman. "Well, then, uhm, I'm sorry. Can you sign your daughter out?"

The kneeling woman starts to laugh so much, she falls on her side. After realizing that the asphalt she's lying on isn't very sanitary, she gets us, still chuckling. "Oh, I'm sorry, but it was just so funny" she apologizes. The woman takes a pen out of her pocket and signs in an empty box next to my name. It's also next to a signature identical to it as well as the one on all of the tuition checks. The man takes a double, triple take between me, my mom, and my aunt.

"C'mon Baby," my mom says to me. My aunt picks up my suitcase. "Kami, Judai, what do you have in here?" she asks.

"I forget" I tell her.

* * *

My mom, Autumn Yuki, had me when she was sixteen years old. According to what my grandfather told me, my father, who I have never met in my entire life, was older than my mother. Much older. Five or six years older. Most peolpe wouldn't find it disturbing that a sixteen-year-old and a twenty-one or twenty-two-year-old would have sex. But my mom was underage the time I was conceived, and still underage when she told her mother about me. And when she ran away from my grandmother, who had gone into such a tantrum my mother feared for both our lives. She went to the father, and received just as much support from him. Apparently he threatened to kill my mom if she didn't get an abortion.

Eventually, Mom went to my grandfather's where she stayed until I was born--healthy and happy--and got a job and apartment. Its the same apartment she lives in today. The same apartment I step into with bags from a fastfood restaurant we stopped at along the way. "Home sweet home!" my mother announces. I look around. Pretty much nothing has changed, except maybe one or two less chairs. And a few more fire extinguishers. "Hey, guess what!" my mom asks. I shrug. "What?"

"The fire department training school called a month ago and asked me to do a training course for some of the students. It was a lesson in domestic small-fire calls!" my mom says happily. I shake my head. "What's that for? We got some more fire hydrants and I got paid a lot of money for doing a good job!"

I sigh again and dig through the bags for my food. My mom walks up to me. "Something wrong, Baby?" my mom asks. "You've been kinda weird since we started driving around for a place for lunch."

I look away from my mother. On the way to the restaurant, I had started thinking about me and Ryo. Then that led to me thinking about Sho, and that's what made me start to become so down. I shake my head, but my mom's wise to me. If I don't talk, she knows for certain that there is something wrong. My mom grabs me by the red blazer I still have on and drags me over to the little living room. She puts me on the couch and lies down on top of me. My mom is pretty light, but it's hard to move with her on me. "Tell me and I will get up!" my mom says.

"Moooooooom" I whine.

"Tell me!" she whines back.

This isn't going to go well for me, so I just sigh and throw my head back. "Over the year, I got a boyfriend--"

"WHAT?!" my mom asks enthusiastically. She sits up, giving me the chance to throw myself to the floor. Unfortunately, my mom is just as quick as me and throws herself on top of me. "Ha ha!" she announces proudly. "I have defeated you!" She always says that. When I was little and we played Duel Monsters, I would let her win and she would say that same thing. Then she would make me play her again, which made me very happy. My mom adjusts herself so she's sitting on my back. "Now tell me, my beloved son, why does that make you sad?"

I hesitate. "Well," I say, "having a boyfriend doesn't, it's everything that's happened because I have my boyfriend."

"Like what?"

I tell my mom about how me and Ryo first started to date after he and I had dueled each other. We had decided to keep it secret because his little brother was my roommate and best friend and we didn't know how our other friends would take the news. Then, one day, after Ryo had a rock thrown into his dorm that threatened to tell the principal that we were dating and throwing in the lie that we were sleeping together on school grounds, we decided to beat the person to the punch. After that, we told our friends. After that, none of them seemed to treat us the same.

I told my mom how Asuka had just stopped looking and talking to me and Ryo. How Jun would say innapropriate things to us and how Daichi just became more into his own girlfriend, who he had just recently dumped. When my mom asked why, I told her about how he and Jun were together during the time Reika and Daichi were together. "Oh," my mom said, then made me go back to the subject of me and Ryo. I said that the only person who didn't seem to be as upset or angry or any more different was Sho, Ryo's brother. In the month after Ryo and I had come out, Ryo was coming over to my dorm instead of me and him meeting in some private spot. There we would start to make out, sometimes to when dinner bell is rung or if Sho walked in on us kissing. After a while, Sho and I stopped talking to each other or seeing each other as much. I would get in late, since Ryo always invited me to his dorm for dinner, and I would get up early since he came in and woke me up.

"Your boyfriend can wake you up in the morning, but an alarm clock or your loving mother can't?" my mom asked. "What's his secret?"

"Licking my cheek" I answer.

"Oh" she says. "Ew."

"Actually it's not all that bad" I said in defense of the way Ryo wakes me up in the morning.

"I still don't understand. Other than loosing your friends, I can't seem to see what'd make you so down about being with Ryo" my mom says.

"Well," I say, "recently Sho moved out of the dorm we shared. But, because we didn't speak to each other or see each other or anything, I didn't know until the dorm head came to my room and asked if I was okay with living by myself. But, I didn't know that he was talking about that, so I said I was okay with it. When I found out, I ran to Sho's new dorm to talk him into moving back in with me and...and we had a fight."

Actually, he yelled at me everything he couldn't tell anyone else. He screamed how painful it was to see his brother and his best friend--no, not his best friend, the person he loved--kiss in his room. He shouted what it was like to take the front of having your friends turn their back on you and slowly loose your best friend at the same time. He exclaimed what it felt like to see the person you love and your own flesh and blood have sex in your own room. I can't imagine what that feels like, especially since I know Sho had trouble making friends back when he lived on the mainland. He must've been so lonely.

"I see what's wrong" my mother says. "You're worried that you've lost your best friend because of your relationship with his brother, right?"

"Yeah," I say. That's not the full reason, but I don't think that telling my mother that Sho loves me, Ryo and I have done it twice in the past couple of weeks, and that I don't think Ryo really loves me, like he once claimed the night we first kissed.

"Honey" my mother says, "you have no need to worry. Just try talking to Sho again. Maybe he'll understand that you and Ryo really like each other. Personally, I think he's being a bit selfish, but that's my opinion and my opinion alone." My mother gets off of me. "C'mon, Judai, let's start eating and enjoy the few weeks we have together!"

I stand up. I go to the table as my mother gets plates out for our little luncheon. But during the entire thing, I can't help thinking about Sho. And the more I do, the more the burgers we got seem to taste like cardboard.

* * *

JUN: AC is still unconscious...so...what do I do know? uh...review, please. and get me out of here! 


	8. preamble to a party

_Hi peoples! How are you? Okay, this is kind of a short chapter, and it may not seem to have much significance, but believe me, once the next chapter rolls around, this chapter will be very important. Oh, and I'm not doing script form for the intros and endings, in case you haven't realized. It gets annoying and old after a while, for me, and me and one of my fellow authoresses got into a fight with a know-it-all flamer who said I would get kicked off because I used script format in my intros. _

_So, before we get to the chapter (trumpet noise) reviews!_

**blue-demongirl: well that's a good thing. you're not supposed to know who gets with who! I want to keep you all guessing! HAHAHA!**

**Lady Blade WarAngel: really? Thanks! I do feel pretty good once you told me that!**

**KagomeGirl92: you could do that! i would read more of it, since i'm really getting into that pairing. ((as well as JohanxSho, but we'll talk about that later)) and you're welcome! you've been so nice to review and read a lot of my stuff, it's only fair. and i did enjoy it. i think Sho has something up his sleeve, and he's gonna use Judai to do it.**

**Cherry Romancer: yes, i know you by now. i know you are crazy and will kill me if i do anything to Sho... am i right?**

_Okay, that's the reviews! now read the fic!_

**ac-the-brain-supreme does not own Yugioh GX. she doesn't even own an internet connection that likes her!**

* * *

"Aniki!" Makoto whines. "Why don't you wanna come and hang out with me and my friends?"

I sigh. I know what this is going to lead to. Makoto is going to make me come with her using the guilt tactic. She'll make me meet one of her guy friends, in hopes that he will ask me out. I don't want that happening. My heart has been trampled once this past few months. There is no need to set up for someone else to be just as harsh. Besides, rebound romances never work. I've seen plenty of them when Onii-san was going after a girl--or guy--who had just been dumped by their boyfriend or girlfriend. Onii-san goes after them because they are more emotional. More likely to sleep with him.

"I just...don't feel like going out" I tell Makoto to pacify her. "I'm actually going to try to call my mom."

Makoto shrugs. I haven't seen my mom in, maybe, a year. Right now, she's out of country, visiting her brother in America. He absolutely hates her--or at least my father--but she keeps trying to fix the rift between them. My mom has tried to stay as close as she can to my uncle and the remainder of her family since her sister died before I was born. I miss my mom. We were really close. So close, in fact, that she pretty much knew I was gay even before I told her. And the day after I told her, she had baked a cake. It was blue and white and the sides had all the colors of the rainbow on them. My dad asked what the cake was for. My mom just said she felt like baking it.

Makoto asks if I would come downstairs with her. I do because the phone is downstairs. As Makoto leaves her home, saying that she'll be back in an hour or two, Ryo closes the book he is reading. I know he wants to tell Makoto something. It's probably about how rude it is to leave your guests at home while you go out and do things without them. But before Ryo can say anything, before another unwanted fight breaks, Makoto is gone. I watch Ryo as he shakes his head. Our eyes meet. I smile. Ryo opens his book again and ignores me. I move along, looking for the phone.

Once I find it, I go onto the back patio. I sit down and dial in my mother's cell phone number. It rings a few times before I hear her voice. "Mushi mushi! This is Starr, present and speaking."

"Hi Mom" I say with a smile.

I hear my mother gasp. "Sho!" she squeals. "Oh, Baby, how are you?"

"I'm doing pretty good" I say. "Me and Ryo made it okay to Uncle Toru's house."

My mother makes a happy squeak on the other line. "That's wonderful, Baby" my mother says. "Tell me about Duel Academy. Letters are no fun, since there seems to be no time to read them."

"First, tell me how Dad is dealing with Uncle Jeremiah" I say.

My mom sighs. "Same old, same old. Jerry is being spiteful and your father can't stand the cold shoulder. I swear, those two are big babies. Except babies forgive and forget." I smile. "Now, tell me, how is Duel Academy? Is it horrible? Do you want to come home and stay home for the rest of the year? If you do, that's okay with me!"

I roll my eyes. "No Mom. It's not that horrible." My mom whines. My mom was against my going to Duel Academy since I told her that I wanted to go. She had dropped little hints all the time. But I wanted to go to Duel Academy, and my mother always said that I should do what my heart tells me to do. I stood strong and my mom let me go to Duel Academy. My mom keeps hinting about me coming home for good, but I normally ignore her. I like Duel Academy. Not as much as I used to, but it's still fun there. Sort of.

"So, tell me!" my mom whines. "Tell me what's happened so far!" I start off, almost instantly, with Judai. I tell my mom how I met Judai and how we had become good friends. I tell her nearly everyhting about Judai. "Ooh" my mom sounds off, "I see you like this Judai boy. Should we start getting ready for the wedding?"

I stall. I look to the ground. "Baby?" my mom asks me. I sniff. "Baby?" my mom repeats. I rub my sleeve against my eyes. "I'm here, Mommy" I tell her.

"Baby, what's wrong?"

"Mommy, Onii-san's got a boyfriend" I tell her. I hope she can make the connection. She does. "Oh, Baby" she mutters. "Oh Baby, I'm so sorry."

I sniffle. "It's okay, Mommy" I tell her. "Judai probably likes Onii-san better. After all, who really wouldn't like Onii-san? They have so much in common. I think it's fair for the two of them to be together."

My mom is silent. "Honey" my mom says. Mommy never calls me or Onii-san or anyone "honey" unless she's angry. "Don't you dare say things like that. Don't you ever put yourself down like that. You are no less or no more than your brother. And Ryo is no less or more than you. Do you understand?"

I shrug. "I guess. But, if that's the case," I pause, thinking of how to say what I want to say before continuing with, "if that's the case, then how come Judai has just forgotten about me?"

**..:::Judai's POV:::..**

I like sleeping. Sleeping is good. Sleeping makes me happy. That's why I like vacation. What I don't like is people licking my face. Which is what happened to me when my mother was intent on waking my up the morning after I got back home. "You said that's how Ryo wakes you up!" my mom tells me as an excuse to why she licked my cheek.

"Doesn't mean I want my mother to do it!" I yell as I get out of bed and march into the kitchen.

"Who's Ryo and what does he do to wake you up?" I turn to see two of my friends sitting on the couch, eating doughnuts and drinking something from a mug.

"Hi guys" I greet my friends. I turn to my mom. "You could've just told me they were here."

"I did. You went, 'Uhhhh. Mom, leave me alone! I'm tired!'" my mom repeats. My friends begin to laugh. I push on my mom's arm. "Don't you have to go to work or something?!" My mom's eyes widened. "Kami! You're right!" Mom rushes to the closet and gets her jacket. She shoves her arms in and says goodbye to me and my friends. "Don't burn the house down!"

"That's your job!" I call after her. After my mom has left, I sit down on the couch next to Niki, my red-headed friend from school last year. I poke the red-head. "Are there any doughnuts left over?" I whine.

"No" he says. "We wanted to have a chance and eating them, so you ended up with nothing." Niki opens a cardboard box full of the icing-covered circles of dough. He picks one out and eats it. The other boy there, Hideki, starts laughing. I steal Hideki's red hat, which he never takes off.

"Give me back my hat!" Hideki commands. I put the hat on my head and stick my tongue out at him. He launches himself at me, actually landing on Niki in the process. "Get off!" Niki demands. We end up in a mess all over the floor after a three-way wrestling fight. Out of breath and sweaty, I start laughing. I lean up and take a doughnut out of the box and start eating it. I take off Hideki's hat and toss it to him. "You could've just asked nicely" I tell him.

"Yeah right" Hideki says as he pulls his hat over his head. "So, tell us about the many hot young thangs that run around the Duel Academy campus."

"You two have girlfriends" I tell Hideki.

Hideki pokes my arm. "Doesn't mean we can't listen to your stories of hot girl duelists!" He stops poking me and stares. "Wait...you still like dudes, right?" Hideki's girlfriend and sister and Niki's sister were the ones who found out about my persuasion before them. At first, they didn't want to hang out with me as much, but Hideki was still chasing after his girlfriend back then. Whoever she hung out with, he wanted to hang out with. And Niki's older sister always had me over anyway, so it didn't even seem like we stopped hanging out.

"Yeah..." I say. "But that doesn't mean I don't find some girls attractive."

"I can tell you about a girl who is very attractive" Niki says. Hideki bops Niki on the head. "Stop talking about her, man! It's getting old and annoying!"

"I wanna hear!" I say.

"No you don't!" Hideki warns.

Niki chuckles. "Ah, doesn't matter anyway. You can just meet her later. My parents are letting me throw a welcome home party for you, and Makoto is coming."

"Awesome!" I say.

"And..." Niki continues, "Makoto says her cousin is from Duel Academy as well and that she'll try to bring him along, too."

I smile. "Neat! What's his name?"

Niki shrugs. "I don't know. She didn't tell me because I wouldn't tell her your name."

"That's mean" I say.

Niki smiles and pokes me with his elbow. "Maybe" Niki says, "but she's adorable when she gets flustered."

Something stings my heart. I get chills and I feel my smile melt off of my face. That, for some reason, reminds me of Ryo. He's never told me I look cute when flustered, or anything sweet like that. He did earlier in our relationship, near the beginning. I remeber him saying that I looked adorable when I duel. I wonder if he still thinks that way. I wonder if he still thinks I look cute. Hideki is trying to get Niki to stop talking about Makoto because it's the third time in two days and he's definitely sick of it. I put my smile back on and join on Niki's side. Not because I want to hear about his girlfriend, but beause I want to hear about what it's like to really be in love.

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_okay...that chapter really was something of a filler, but who cares? REVIEW!_


	9. the welcome home party

_okay boys and girls--_

_or, just girls. I really don't think a guy would, of his own free will, read a yaoii fanfiction. I'm pretty sure there are boys that do, but I don't know any. hey, if one of you reviewers is a guy and loves yaoii fanfiction, can you tell me? thanks!_

_anywho--okay boys and girls, we're going to read a chapter that teaches you...well, I don't want to spoil anything, so just read it on through!_

_enjoy!_

**ac-the-brain-supreme does not own Yugioh GX. if she did, there would be more awesome, red-headed characters.**

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Makoto drags me up the path to her boyfriend's house. "C'mon, Aniki" Makoto whines. "Not only do you need to get out and do something, but I already promised to bring you to the party."

I pull my hand out of Makoto's grip. "You don't have to drag me, if that's the case." I tell her. Makoto stares at me with hands on her hips. "It's just, I don't want you to hook me up with any of your friends just yet."

Makoto smiled caringly. My blonde cousin stands by my side and puts her arm around my shoulders. "I understand, Aniki. No pairing you up with any of my friends." I smile and nod at her. I pull away from her and jog up to the front door. "Hey! Wait for me! Meanie!" Makoto yells at me. She chases me up to the front door and nearly knocks me over in a hug. Makoto rings the doorbell. In a minute, a brunette girl stands in the doorway.

I recognize this girl. She was in the grade above mine and the one below Onii-san's. Her name is Kaliegh-Christian, or K.C. for short. I remember some people called her Kaiba because she looks like Seto Kaiba. She has a serious face with neat brown hair that frames her face very well. K.C. has narrow blue eyes that rarely show any of her emotions unless she's around her friends. She doesn't talk much, at least I didn't see or hear her speak outside some of the classes we shared together. "Hey Mako-chan" K.C. greets Makoto. "Niki's waiting for you." K.C.'s blue eyes land on me. "Who's this?" she asks.

"I'm Sho" I introduce. "I'm Makoto's cousin."

K.C. smiles. "Oh" she draws out. K.C. pats my head. "Well, any friend of my baby brother's girlfriend is a friend of mine." K.C. waves us in and Makoto pulls me into the house. K.C. closes the door and walks past me and Makoto.

Inside, the house has dim lights and lots of noise. Makoto rushes past me and into one of the rooms. K.C. walks into another room and I'm left alone. I heave a sigh and walk in the direction Makoto did. I peer inside and see Makoto. The music that is playing and the voices that are shouting over the music are coming from this room. Because of that, I don't hear the shriek of joy Makoto releases when she jumps and hugs her boyfriend. Makoto's boyfriend, a red-haired boy Makoto told me was named Niki, hugs her back and kisses her. A blonde girl that is nearby giggles and swoons onto the shoulder of a nearby brown-haired girl. I see others in the crowd comment and tell them things, but I don't hear.

I push myself towards the room K.C. entered. Inside is the kitchen and I walk in on K.C. and another blonde girl talking to each other about something I don't know or understand. I recognize the blonde girl. Her name is Jessah. My "friend" from the mainland was crazy over her. He left me because she thought I was a dork or weird or something that one of her other friends, Pippa, told her. Pippa was Oniisan's first girlfriend. That relationship ended badly and with Pippa afraid of Oniisan and me.

Jessah, like I said before, has long blonde hair that is fairly well-moussed. She's tall and has a big chest. Not as big as Makoto's but close. Jessah didn't go to my school, but she's K.C.'s best friend, so I know some things about her. Like that she is pretty much the polar opposite of K.C. Jessah, from what I've seen, is loud and happy and is quick-tempered. "I'm just saying," Jessah says, "that ice cream and French fries taste like fried dough and ice cream!"

"Ew," K.C. says, sticking her tongue out. "It makes me want to puke!"

"Then...cookies and salad dressing!" Jessah contested.

"You make weird food combinations" K.C. commented as she turned around in my direction. "Oh, hey Sho. What're you doing in here?" Jessah looked over as well.

"Hey," she said in a semi-angry tone. "Aren't you related to that Ryo guy?!" K.C. made an "o" with her mouth.

I backed away a little. "Uhm, yeah. He's my brother" I answer. I bend my head a little. "I'm Makoto's cousin" I say, trying to gain any points I had lost by being related to someone they like.

Jessah glared at me before turning back to the plate of food she had in front of her. The blonde picked it up and walked past me with a "hmph." I watched as she walked past me and into the room where the party was being held. I feel my shoulders stoop and I feel tears prick my eyes. I also feel someone's hand on my shoulder. I look up to see K.C. looking down on me with a nice smile. "Don't be sad" she tells me. "Jessah can't drop a grudge." I smile and nod. "Do you want to come out to the room with me?"

I shake my head. "Not now" I say. K.C. nods her head and leaves me in the kitchen.

**..:::Judai's POV:::..**

"Dummy!" Hideki yells at me. "How can you be late to your own party?!"

"Hey, it's not like I'm the one throwing it!" I say with a shirt in my mouth. My mom is behind me running a rake of a brush through my hair. "Ow! Mom, that hurts!"

"Well I'm sorry if you don't brush your hair like you should!" she yells at me. "I guess I should be thankful you at least took a shower." I get up and away from my mother. I pull my shirt over my wet head and put on my shoes.

"Are you ready, Yuki?" Hideki asks me. He and Niki have a tendacy to call me by my last name rather than my first. I don't know why. I guess they just like it better. I rush over to the door and turn and yell to my mom, "Hideki is bringing me home!" My mom nods her head and yells good-bye.

**..:::Sho's POV:::..**

I can hear the sounds of the party going on downstairs. The house I'm at has three floors and there is a set of stairs from the bottom to the third floor where there's a small balcony. It's windy up here. But the night is warm, so it doesn't matter. I lay down on my back. I tried being at the party, but I just couldn't. Everyone was so happy and so close to each other. The only person who really knows me is pretty much ignoring me. I sigh. When Makoto is with Niki, she ignores the rest of the world. That was like how I felt when I was with Aniki. Back when we were friends, Aniki and I would lie on one of the rocks on the beach, he would just talk to me and random points in time.

I feel tears prick at my eyes. I sit up and rub my face. I need to stop thinking about Aniki. I need to stop calling him "Aniki" too. Judai abandoned me. That makes him Judai now. But I want to call him Aniki. I don't want our friendship to be over. I want Oniisan and Judai to stop dating. My brother will get over it. And I could comfort Judai. Maybe we could even go out on a date or two. I smile. Maybe, if I can get Judai to break up with Oniisan, he will come to me for comfort.

"What am I thinking?" I ask myself. "That sound like something..."

Like something Oniisan would do.

I'm starting to think like Oniisan! I'm starting to think like my big brother. My selfish, uncaring big brother. My brother, who nearly raped a girl, who's had sex with so many different people of both genders that he's a walking STD. My brother who probably would've sacrificed me to a bunch of monsters if he didn't pity me so much. Maybe it would have been better that way. It would've saved me heartache. I sometimes wonder what it would be like if Oniisan did decide to beat Camula. What would happen to me? What would happen in this world? I've had so many nightmares about it. That was so scary. I was so afraid that Oniisan would decide to sacrifice me. But that didn't happen, and here I am, sitting alone on the top of someone's house.

"Aniki?" I turn around and see Makoto coming up the stairs. "Aniki, what are you doing up here?"

I shrug. "I don't feel like being at the party" I answer. "No one really seems to like me."

"That's because you haven't really given them the chance, Aniki. Come down to the party. If you're lucky, you can get here before Yuki does" Makoto says, trying to coerce me down.

"Who's Yuki?" I ask.

"The person this party is for" Makoto explains. "He's not here yet."

"Wow...that's kind of sad" I say.

Makoto nodded. "Do you want to come down?" she asks again. I shake my head. "But don't you want to meet Yuki?"

"Send him up here with a plate of cookies" I say sarcastically. Makoto nods with a smile and runs down the stairs. I look down. Somehow, I don't think Makoto realizes I was joking.

**..:::Judai's POV:::..**

The house I step into is much cleaner than my own. It's also pretty big. Niki's house has three levels with a star gazing platform sticking out of the side of the house just above Niki's older sister's, K.C., room. In fact, the staircase for the platform runs right past her window. If K.C. wanted to, she could go up to the platform unnoticed. She could sneak a boy in the house and they could probably do whatever the hell they wanted. Which is why Their mother always has it locked.

"Yuki!" I hear Jessah scream before I see her tall, blonde body fling itself at me and wrap her arms around my neck. I felt my throat begin to close from the force of her arms squeezing shut my breathing canal. I claw at her arms and Jessah pulls away. "Sorry Yuki!" Jessah turns to Hideki and throws her arms around him as well. Hideki blushes and smiles and hugs her back. Jessah pulls the two of us further into the house.

"Where were you guys?" Niki asks me and Hideki as we walk into the room the party is in.

"Sleepy here was out until four" Hideki blames.

"That doesn't surprise me" K.C. comments as she walks by us. Jessah lets go of Hideki and follows her best friend into the kitchen. As they go into the next room, another girl walks out. The new girl has short, blonde hair and is holding a plate of cookies. She looks at me and asks, "Are you Yuki?" I nod. The girl smiles. "My cousin wants to see you. He's up on the platform." The girl hands me the plate of cookies. "He wants you to bring cookies" she adds. I look down at the plate the girl has just handed me.

"This is Makoto" Niki explains as he pulls his girlfriend to him. Makoto smiles and waves at me.

"Okay" I say. I walk to where the steps that go up to the stargazing platform start. I don't know why Makoto's cousin would want to meet me. Maybe they've heard about me and wanted to talk. That would be kinda awesome. Maybe they want an auntograph or something. Okay, maybe not an autograph, but maybe something like that.

**..:::Sho's POV:::..**

I feel sleepy. The music that plays in the background is slowly putting me to sleep. I roll onto my side. I can see the entrance to the little deck I'm on. My eyes slide shut before sliding back open. This happens a second and a third time. After the fourth, I don't think that I'll be able to fall asleep. I sit up and stare into the eyes of my former friend. "J-Judai?" I stutter. "What are you doing here?"

Judai places a plate of cookies on the deck. "Uhh...a blonde girl sent me up here to give you cookies" Judai says.

"Did she have pink eyes?" I ask. Judai nods. "That's my cousin. But she said she'd up the guy who the party is for."

"That's me" Judai says.

"But your name is Judai, not..." A light bulb goes off in my head. Makoto said the party was for a guy named Yuki. Judai's last name is Yuki. I slap my forehead. Why didn't I see this coming? "Thanks for the cookies, Judai. You can go now." Judai looks at me. He shakes his head and climbs the rest of the way up the stairs and sits down next to me.

A new song starts up down at the party. Judai is staring at me, for some reason. I stare back up at him. My cheeks turn pink. I try to look away, but it's hard to. I've seen Judai look like that before. It's the same determined look he has when he duels. It normally makes me shake and swoon, but now it just paralyzes me. In the song that's playing, the singer says how no one could love her.

_'Cause everybody's got the way I should feel_

_An' everybody's talkin about how I can't can't be loved_

_But I want want wanna be loved_

_Wanna be loved for real_

Judai places a hand next to my head. "What happened to us, Sho?" My blush darkens. "I mean, we were so close. How'd we fall apart?"

_Oh how I try_

_To be just okay_

I shrug. "I dunno, Aniki."

_All I ever really wanted was a little peice of you._

Judai's face comes closer to mine.

_An' everybody's talkin' about how I can't can't be your love_

_But I want want wanna be your love_

_Wanna be your love for real_

Soon he's the only thing I can see, smell, or feel. His arms are pinning me down and his lips are smothering mine with a gentle and caring kiss. The song coming to an end as my arms surround Judai and pull him closer to me.

_Oh! Everybody's talkin' how I can't can't be your love_

_But I want want wanna be your love_

_Wanna be your love for real!

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_

hee hee...I am SO EVIL! OH! And the song that was used in this fic is not mine either. It belongs to Rachel Yamagata and it's name is "Be Be Your Love." It's cool. You should listen to it.

You should also review this fic.

Later!


	10. something that should be forgotten

_And now, because I was so cruel to you in my last chapter update, I shall continue. I hope ya'll enjoy this new chapter 'cause I took a long time to make it the most perfect thing ever! Precious studying time for my exams stolen for my art._

_Course, I don't normally study in the first place._

_Ah, I studied, so I'm gonna get good scores and I will continue to post and do stuff on the web, so don't you worry! _

_And now that I am done talking, let's begin! Fic start!_

ac-the-brain-supreme does not own Yugioh GX. She wishes she does. She wishes she was tri lingual as well so that she would understand spanish and japanese so that reading spanish fanfictions and watching japanese episodes weren't so difficult.

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Judai's POV

It's so different.

I don't know why, but kissing Sho is so different from kissing Ryo. When I kiss Ryo, he instantly wants control. He always wants to be the one to slip his tongue into my mouth. He always wants to lean over me. My back hurts after some kisses. Ryo also needs a good chap stick too. It isn't that his lips are drier than a peice of burnt toast, but they just don't feel right. He also makes it hard to breathe sometimes. But with Sho, it is just...better. I don't know how else to explain it. His lips are just the perfect shape and tenderness. He isn't very controlling either, which makes things a little awkward since I'm so used to having to bend over backwards when I kiss. And Sho doesn't try to push his nose up mine, either.

When I kiss Sho, it is just an all-together better experience then when I kiss Ryo.

I hear the song end and I leave Sho's lips. His glasses are a little crooked, probably because he was shocked and I came at him pretty fast. Sho is also supporting himself on his elbows. Did I knock him over? I don't ask him. I just watch as Sho sits up and asjusts his glasses. There isn't much light out, but the few beams that do escape the house lighten Sho's face enough for me to see that he is blushing. Sho seems to find other things that are wrong with him and try to fix them. I smile. He's so cute.

Sho is looking at the stargazing platform for a minute. One and a half. Two. Finally, he looks up at me. "Th-That was some kiss" he says.

I smile. I'm about to agree and comment on it, when what two minutes of silence didn't deliver. The realization that I just cheated on my boyfriend. No, worse than that. I cheated on my boyfriend with his own brother. My old room mate. The boy who, right before he left, confessed to me that he loved me. Kami, what have I done? Sho reaches out for me, probably worried that I'm not saying anything. "Aniki," Sho whispers. I knock his hand away. Sho takes it back and places it under his mouth.

I can't stay up here. I stand up and try to get away, but I feel someone tug on my shirt. I turn and see Sho. "Aniki, is something wrong?" I slap Sho's hand away. It must have hurt some, because he's holding onto his hand which is turning red where I hit it. I stare at him and soon he stares back at me. I slowly begin to descend the stairway but Sho calls out again. I have to say something and against my better judgment, I nearly yell. "Just forget about what I just did. It was a mistake, okay? So, just forget about it." I run the rest of the way down the steps, stopping to catch my breath just as I hit the wrap around porch. And I hear it. It's faint but I'm sure of what I'm hearing.

The sound of sobs, coming from above.

I run my hand down my face and lean against a nearby wall. "Kami, why did I do that?" My first thought is, _Because you are a lying, lower-than-dirt whore._ I believe it, too. I mean, who else **but** a whore whould do that kind of thing? "Damn whore" I whisper.

"Hey," I hear someone say. I don't need to look up to see that it's K.C. "You okay, Yuki?"

I shake my head. "I don't feel like being out anymore."

"Why?" she asks. "My brother and his forget-a-lot friend paid enough attention to do this for you. You should be more grateful."

"Don't patronize me!" I shout as I stand up. I see the shocked look on her face before walking away. "Where's Hideki? I want to go home." K.C. doesn't answer me. I hear her walk away and up the creaky steps that lead to the platform. I sigh and walk into the house. I need to find Hideki. After all, he's my ride home.

**Sho's POV**

It was a mistake. He said it was a mistake. Nothing but a mistake. Something that I should forget about. God knows, he's probably forgotten about it. I pound a fist on the wooden floor I'm kneeling on. It's wet from the tears that I seem to have a surplus of nowadays. Somehow, no matter how much I cry I always have more to let out when I cry and more to cry about. I punch the floor again.

"How could you, Judai?" I whisper. No one is around to hear me. No one ever is. "How could you just do that?" I bend over so that my head is touching the floor below my knees. "How could you just kiss me and tell me it was an accident? You know how I feel, damn it." I sniffle a little before continuing. "You know that I love you." It's then that I all but bust out in tears.

Minutes pass by. Hell, for all I know hours have flown by, Makoto has left me, and the family that owns this house has been asleep for a while now. I don't know how much time has passed. All I know is that time has passed and someone has clearly heard me cry like a pitiful little kid. I hear the stairs creak, and that creak getting louder and louder. I feel the vibrations of whoever is coming up as they shake the stairs unknowingly. My worst fear is that it's Judai, come up to see if I'm okay. Or maybe it's worse. Maybe it's Onii-san. He wasn't here when I came up, but he could've come while I was up here. Maybe Judai told him what happened. Oh God, I don't want anyone to come up here. I just want to be left completely alone.

"Sho?" I look up. It's K.C. She's got a worried look on her face. She climbs the rest of the way up the stairs and sits next to me. "Are you okay, Sho?" she asks. Her arms wrap around me and pull me to her.

"It's not fair" I tell her, my verbal diarhea yet again make me vomit out information I would rather not have people know. "He kissed me and then said it was a mistake. Even though he knows how I feel about it. It's not fair." I begin to sob even harder into K.C.'s shirt. K.C. just sits there. She lets me cry out everything that I have kept bottled up inside me. I feel her hands rub my back and run through my hair. I start to calm from what she's doing. Pretty soon, my sobs have subsided and K.C. is asking me if I would want to go inside. I nod. She leads me down only one of the four flights that twist from the deck. K.C. pushes against the window, which pops open wide enough for us to climb inside.

"We need some light" K.C. says after she has closed the window. A desk lamp is switched on and I see some of the room K.C. has just taken me in. The carpet is light blue and the walls are white. The lamp that just got turned on was sitting on a desk that was neatly cluttered. The room is pretty much spotless. "This is my room" K.C. explains. She turns on the light that hangs from the ceiling. "Do you want anything? Hot chocolate? The cookies that we left up there."

K.C. means the cookies to be a joke, but I don't find anything funny about it. I just nod. "Yes please." K.C. shrugs and is ready to leave the room when I add, "Could you, maybe, send Makoto up?"

K.C. turns and says, "No problem."

**Judai's POV**

"You want to leave?" Hideki asks me. "Why? This party is for you, after all."

"Yeah, man" Jessah comments as she slumps her upper body over her boyfriend. "Do you know how much time and effort Hideki and Niki, the world's biggest slackers, took to--"

"I don't care right now! I just want to go home!" I tell them.

"Too bad!" Hideki announces. "My mom is working late tonight, so we have to wait until she is off of work."

I shake a little before turning away from my friends. "This sucks!" I shout. I stomp away from my friends until I find an empty room. It's the bathroom, so I just lock the door and sit on the toilet. My hands rub my forehead. Why did I kiss Sho? I'm going out with his brother, for Heaven's sake. Sho seemed so happy that I did kiss him. That just made everything worse. And I told him that it was a mistake. Oh, Kami, what the hell am I going to do.

"I can't tell Ryo" I say to myself. "I just can't. It'll break his heart."

I doubt that, somehow. Like, in the depths of my heart, I don't believe that Ryo would be very upset with my kissing his brother. Sure, I believe he'll get angry. Who wouldn't? But, I just don't think that he would be...sad. He just doesn't seem to be the kind who would be sad about anything. I hear someone knock on the door. I stand up and crack open the door. On the other side is a girl with black curls and violet eyes. "Uhm, hello? I really need to go" she says. I step out and let her in. She smiles and thanks me before closing the door. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to bum in a bathroom. People need to use those, after all.

**Sho's POV**

The door creaks open. I look and see Makoto peeking into the room. With sad eyes, she slowly walks in and stands in front of me. Her head is pointed down at the blue carpet and her arms are behind her back. I can tell her fingers are twitching. I can tell that she's nervous. Even though I can't really see her well through my tear-drenched eyes. I also took my glasses off to keep them from getting stained. Makoto blinks once or twice before saying, "I'm sorry, Aniki. I shouldn't have brought you to the party."

I shake my head. "No, you were trying to help me" I say. "Besides, it was kind of nice to get out of the house for a night."

"It was still not a good idea" Makoto says, rocking on her heels. I sniff and pat the bed, indicating her to sit down next to me. Makoto does so, but reluctantly and with guilt weighing down her shoulders. After she sits, her arms circle my torso and pull me to her. That places my head right underneath one of her boobs. I blink once or twice, then smile. My smile fades when she asks, "What happened?"

I'm silent. I don't want to tell her. It'll make her feel so horrible. "I don't want to talk about it" I say. And with that, she quiets.

**Judai's POV**

Waiting sucks. I'm a pretty impatient person, but right now I can't stand the thought that I have to just sit here and wait for my ride to get out of work and come. I can't stand the slow ticking of the clock above my head. I need to find something to do to pass time, but I don't want to do anything. I don't know what to do, even though I want to know. Kami, why does my life have to be so confusing. I hear someone cough. I turn my head to the left and see the girl who wanted to get into the bathroom. She smiles at me. "Hi" she says politely. "My name is Pippa."

I nod at her. "I'm Judai." Pippa nods at me. She stares at me and I stare at her. I look down at the floor, her eyes falling on my shoulder. We stay in our respective positions until she decides to sit down next to me. We fall into a silence again. I glance at Pippa. Her hands are playing with the fingers on the other hand. Her left foot is moving up and down on the tile floor in the kitchen. Her head is pointed upwards and her violet eyes keep shifting from me to the ceiling. I look back to the floor, for it is wise and will answer all my questions in life. Then I hear her say something. I look back up at her. "What?"

"I said that we have a mutual acquaintance" she repeats.

I think that she must be talking about Jessah. She knows most everybody in her school, and I remember seeing Pippa and Jessah together before in the same uniform. I wouldn't be surprised if she didn't remember me. I grunt, "Yeah."

Pippa nods. "Yeah" she whispers. "I asked Jessah who you were, and she told me who you were and that you were dating Ryo." She looks at me straight in the eye. Pippa shrugs. "I didn't know he had turned gay after we broke up."

I sit up. "You and Ryo were...a couple?"

"Yeah" Pippa says. "I went to school with his little brother, Sho. We were in the same class. I remember the first day I met Ryo. He was standing with his friends and I was staring at him. He looked at me and my heart stopped. The world seemed to dissappear when our eyes met. Then he walked over and, in front of the entire school, he asked me if I wanted to go to a movie that night." I stare up at Pippa. Why is she telling me this? I mean, wouldn't a girl be angry that someone else was dating their old flame? I know I would. Pippa snaps out of the trance she's placed herself in. "A-Anyway, I went out with him and afterwards he was such a gentleman to me. I never really paid much attention to Sho before I went out with Ryo, but I started hanging out with Sho. He was so nice. I'm sort of guilty that I ended my friendship with him after Ryo and I broke up."

I blink. Guilty? "What happened?"

Pippa stares into her lap. Her hands are placed neatly in each other. "One night, when we were alone in his home, Ryo took me up to his room. We started to make out on his bed and he was really getting into it. I was kind of enjoying it too, but then he unhooked my bra. I told him to stop, but he wouldn't. I told him again, more forcefully this time, but he wouldn't. I had to kick him in the stomach to get Ryo to leave me alone. I got off of the bed and looked at Ryo. He was so angry. It scared me. I ran the whole way to the bus stop to get the bus that drove by my house." Pippa sighs. "The next school day he walked up to me and told me that we were through. Then he just walked off."

I'm shaking. "Judai," Pippa asks, "has Ryo ever pressured you?" I shake my head, unable to say my lie. "Well, you should just say 'no' if he ever does. I remember seeing him with three other girls in the two weeks before I transferred schools." I nod again.

Three other girls? The thought reverberates through my mind. Three other girls? He was with three girls in two weeks? What if he slept with them? And those are just the two weeks after Pippa. Who knows how many girls he was with in three weeks, or a month. And what about guys? And what about before Pippa? Ryo's told me that he's had boyfriends and girlfriends before me, but he's never told me whether he's slept with any of them. And I've never asked. I...I can't believe this. There has to be a different Ryo. Pippa couldn't have been talking about the same Ryo who loves me. He told me he loves me, after all. Ryo has to be telling the truth. He just has to.

Jessah skips into the kitchen at this point in time. Pippa and I watch as our tall, blonde friend digs through the frige and pulls out a few bottles of vodka. She pours a third of one bottle into the sink, then the next third into a punch bowl she pours punch mix into the bowl and stirs it up until everything is evenly mixed. Then, she pours most of another bottle of vodka into the sink again, repeating with another three bottles. Jessah turns to Pippa and I, who are staring at her like she is crazy. "What?" Jessah asks.

**Sho's POV**

"Mom, someone got into your vodka stash!" K.C. tells her mom over the phone after Jessah comes up to the room and tells K.C. that everything is ready. The entire room hears K.C.'s mother start shouting. K.C. tries to tell her mom what has happened, but the older woman on the other end tells K.C. to get everyone out of the house. "I tried Mom, but they wouldn't listen." K.C.'s mother doesn't want to hear any of it and if K.C. isn't able to get anyone out, then she will have to just come home and do it herself. The dial tone fills the room and K.C. turns off the phone. She smiles. "Well, this way it won't be embarrassing for you to have to have your Mom come and get you."

Makoto shakes her head. "You're horrible, Kace."

"I'm helpful" K.C. tells the younger blonde girl.

"Besides, Yuki wants to leave" Jessah informs us. "Now, he can have his wish."

"Why do you guys call him Yuki?" I ask without thinking. "His name's Judai, after all." The room looks at me. I start to blush.

"Really?" Makoto asks.

"Yuki is his last name" K.C. explains to my confused cousin. Makoto nods and understands. K.C. turns to me and raises an eyebrow. She opens her mouth to ask me something, but Makoto beats her to the punch. "Kami! Judai Yuki?! That's the guy who totally left you in the dust! Your old room mate, right?" Makoto grabs my shoulders. "What the hell did he do to you?!" I shake my head. Makoto shakes me harder. "Tell me, damn it!"

K.C. and Jessah pulls Makoto off of me. "You're gonna give the kid a concussion" Jessah tells Makoto. Makoto is trembling. She shakes her head side to side, small dropletts of tears falling from her closed eyes. Makoto sniffs and looks me straight in the eye. "Aniki, I don't want you near Judai anymore than you need to be. I don't want you to get hurt anymore!" Makoto runs out of the room, still crying.

I start to feel a little guilty. But I can't feel guilty for very long, because K.C. and Jessah turns to me in a second and begin to interrogate me. "What happened?" "You go to school with Yuki?" "What does Makoto mean?" "Do we need to beat him up for you?" I smile and try to ignore their questions by hiding my head underneath the pillow.

**Judai's POV**

Pippa and I have gone into a conversation when an angry blonde girl runs through one of the doors that enter the kitchen. Her chest heaves with the breaths she is struggling to get down her throat. The blonde girl looks left and right, her gaze settling on me. She approaches me, tear tracts running down her face and a scowl on her lips. "You bastard!" she shouts just before she punches me in the face. There is so much force behind her punch that I fall out of my chair. "What the hell did you do to him?" she shouts as she jumps on me and just starts to wail on me. Pippa tries to pull the girl off of me, but gets hit in the stomach.

At that moment, a woman with firey red hair slams open the door that connects outside to the kitchen. Makoto ignores the woman and continues to punch me until the woman pulls Makoto off. "What the-- What are you doing?" the woman asks. Makoto struggles for a minute longer before falling apart in tears in the woman's torso. I sit up and rub the bruises that lie under my shirt. Another woman walks through the door. This woman, I can tell instantly, is Ryo and Sho's mother. Her hair is the same shade of blue as Ryo's and her eyes are the same bright silver color as Sho's. The red-haired woman looks at the new woman who walked into her home. "Um," Ryo and Sho's mother starts, "I'm here to pick up my son and neice."

* * *

_And now, because a reviewer got confused, I'm going to map out the OCs that count!_

**_The Ones You've Met_**

_K.C.--she's gonna be getting much more important as the story goes on. she's got a lot to teach, after all._

_Autumn (Judai's mom)--she's his effin mother for crying out loud..._

**_The Ones You Sort of/Haven't Met_**

_Starr (Sho and Ryo's mom)--see above OC_

_Jeremiah (Sho and Ryo's uncle mother's side )--he won't be speaking much, but he will still be pretty important._

_And that's all of them. I'm going to try to keep it to these OCs. You'll probably see Makoto and Judai's friends pop up every once in a while, but you really need to keep tabs on these four. _

_Hope ya'll enjoyed the chapter! Review and come back next time! Later!_


	11. bringing the date home

_Okay, this starts out with a dream, in case you don't realize it. But, like, yeah. OH! And you learn a little about Judai's dad. It's not much, but it's kinda supposed to be a little important, so just, like, read and enjoy, man. Actually, you get to learn more and more about Judai's father the further along we go in this story. Split-second decisions are cool, right? Anywho, enough rambling. Here da story!_

**ac-the-brain-supreme does not own Yugioh GX. if she did, it would be filled with yaoii and sex. like this fic!!!**

_

* * *

_

_He looks around, seeing nothing but the darkness that he had been hurtled into. He had gotten in by his own choice, but through another's doing. He sits up. It was then that he realizes that he was completly naked. Shirt, jacket, pants, underwear, shoes, socks, and even his glasses could not be found on his body or anywhere near where he was sitting. He wraps one of his arms around his torso and another in front of his groin, trying to keep whoever was around him, if there was anyone around him, from seeing his naked body. He shivers. It was neither cold nor warm where he was, but it was terrifying. The darkness kept him from working out the dimentions of the place. That created an air of closeness and openness at the same time. Chlaustrophobia set in on him and he curled himself into the fetile position. _

_A rush of air and a nearly unnoticable noise sliced the atmosphere around him. Fear froze him with the exception of the shaking that chattered his teeth. He felt something loom behind him. Slowly, he turned to see what was there. He couldn't see much. Just that it was of large stature and that it had raised a taloned hand high above his head. His eyes grew as the claws fell fast on his form, tearing a huge peice of flesh and muscle and bone off of him. He fell to the ground, bleeding uncontrollably but feeling no pain whatsoever. _

_He saw their outlines as they circled around him at an immeasurable pace. Tears fell from his eyes. He did not want to die. He wanted to go back home and be with his mother and father and brother and his friends. He wanted to have been courageous enough to tell him how he felt. He wanted to go back in time and tell his brother that he didn't want to go, that he was afraid to. Or, if not that, be able to tell Judai that he loved him before he was sacrificed. Teeth tore off another part of him. He didn't feel pain, only bloodloss and tears.

* * *

_

I bolt upright in my bed. I look at a nearby clock. It's three in the morning.

I lay back down, my head being cushioned by my fluffy pillow. I sigh and try to fall asleep again. After a while, my eyes open again. The clock says three fifteen. I sit back up again. I draw my knees up, the sheets coming with them, and lay my arms and chin on my bent limbs.

I had another dream about them. The Sacred Beasts. I rub my eyes. The dreams are almost always the same. I'm in the darkness and I don't know what's happening. I also never feel anything when they start eating me. I feel my right shoulder, just to make sure it is still there. It is. I sigh, my breath shaking as it comes out. I can't remember the last time I have ever been so scared before I was nearly sacrificed. If Onii-san had decided I wasn't good enough, if he felt like I was right and wanted to respect my wishes, if he didn't want to go to bed with Judai, I would have had to live through that nightmare over and over again.

I reach for my glasses. Then I turn on my side-table lamp. I'm finally back at my home, in the room I've slept in for all my life. I know every last bit of this room like the back of my hand. My computer is in the corner that has the window that looks out to the backyard. There is a door on the wall that leads to Onii-san's room. I remember sneaking through that door when I was really little and afraid. I would wake him and ask if I could sleep with him. Onii-san would always let me sleep with him, until he turned ten. By that time, I would just crawl into bed with him, assuming that he would just let me sleep with him. One night, he pushed me out of his bed. I tried again, this time asking him. He looked at me, angry, and simply said, "Sho, sleep in your own freaking bed."

I did what he said. Ever since, that door has been locked from his side.

I get out of my bed, feeling the plush carpet under the soles of my feet. My brother is in there now. Sleeping. I walk over to the door. I turn the knob, but it's locked. Of course. Why do I try to do this? I know it is locked, but I still try. Just like with Judai. I know that I can't have him, I can't be with him, but I still chase after him. Like at the party last night. When he kissed me, I should have pushed him off. I shouldn't have hugged him. I shouldn't have cared when I found out that Makoto had gone downstairs and beaten him up. But I did care. Not because Makoto got in trouble, but because the one I loved was hurt. I was actually angry at Makoto. I should have been thanking her. But I couldn't.

I walk over to the computer and sit down. I turn it on and, as soon as it was completely booted, open Word Processor. For the next five hours, I do nothing but type and type and type.

**Judai's POV**

"Why would she beat you up?" my mother asks as she sits at our dinning room table. I flip the pancake. My mom may suck at cooking, but somewhere in my genes--whether it be my father's or my grandfather's or my grandmother's--I was gifted with the ability to not burn anything.

"She was Sho's cousin" I explain. I place the steaming pancake on the pile that had been growing steadily for the past fourty-five minutes. I pour the last of the batch onto the sizzling skillet. The hissing noise of liquid-on-extreme-heat voiced its way across the apartment. My mother gets out of her chair and enters the kitchen. She opens the door and gets out the maple syrup, butter, whipped cream, straberries, chocolate syrup, and blueberries in one trip. She closes the door with her hip. She puts the condiments on the table and traverses back to the kitchen and gets the plates and silverware out.

"Do you think that he asked her to do that?" my mother suggests.

"Sho would never do that!" I defend my friend immediately. I seem to have frightened my mother. I sigh. "Sho and I were the best of friends. He may not believe we are now, but he would never intentionally ask someone to hurt another person. He's too shy to."

My mother shakes her head. She mumbles something. "What?" I ask.

"Nothing" my mother answers. She finishes setting the table and sits back down at the table. I stare at her sadly. She is smiling so widely that it kind of scares me. My mother looks away, hiding her frown with her hand. I turn back to the pancakes that are being cooked and flip them. In five minutes they are finished and I am carrying the plate of twelve or fifteen pancakes to the table. My mother smiles and nods at me. "It smells delicios, Judai" she compliments. She takes five and places them on her plate. I stare at her, waiting for her to finish making her pancakes perfect. She looks up at me and asks, still smiling, "Is something wrong honey?"

I sit silent for a moment before asking, "What was my father like?"

My mother is silent. I've never asked this question before. She's never talked about him before. I tried my grandfater, but he told me that I was better off without him. I asked my aunt, but she had never even known that my mom was dating before she found out my mom was pregnant. But I just think that it's fair that I at least know how he treated my mother. My mother rests her knife and fork and sighs. She placs her elbows on the table and leans her forehead on her fisted hands. "I hoped I would never be faced with this question" she whispers. My mother looks at me. "What would you like to know?"

I lump shifts in my throat, making my Adam's apple quiver. "How did you two meet?" I ask.

My mother nods. It's a simple question and story. Something she could handle. "When I was fourteen, I worked as a baby sitter for a woman who was young and had about five children. He was her next-door neighboor and sometimes he'd help me watch them. He could drive, so he would take us to the park or the pool or something like that. He would drive me home or walk me home. He was so nice to me that when it was raining so hard one day and he invited me into his house until the storm was over, I just couldn't say 'no'." My mother sighs. She looks at the wall, falling back into that moment. "To make a story short, if I hadn't agreed to staying at his house, you would never have been born."

"Was that the night that I..."

"Was conceived?" my mother finishes. She shakes her head. "No. It took six months before he and I first did it, and he always used a condom." My mother holds up one finger. "Except for once." She sighs. "That night, it broke when he was taking it out of the wrapping and I just told him it didn't matter." My mother looks at me, smiling while a tear runs down her face. I pick up my knife and fork and start shovelling food down my throat as fast as I can. I don't want to look at my mother when she gets like this. She's looked at me like that a lot ever since I told her I wanted to be a famous duelist. I don't get it and I never will.

Five seconds after I have placed my knife and fork back on the table, the phone rings. I get up and run to the phone, leaving my mother sitting in her chair. I already have a suspicion on who it might be, and I am correct. "I'm glad to see that you are awake" Ryo says after I say hello. My face heats up, and I hear my mother "ooooh". I put my hand over the receiver and say to her, "Shut up!" I uncover my hand and say, "My mom made me make breakfast for her."

Ryo laughs. "I didn't know you cooked" he tells me.

"He makes some of the best food I have ever tasted!" my mother shouts, apparently able to hear what Ryo said. "You should come over and have dinner on a night that I work late!"

"Mom!" I shout at her.

Ryo is laughing in his sexy, seductive way. "My mother is the same. I haven't told her about us, yet."

I frown. "Why? Does she not know?"

"She does, I just...well, I think Sho already told her" Ryo answers.

"Oh" I say. I feel a little bad. Was Sho so sad that he had to go to his mother? I push this out of my mind when I realize that Ryo is talking. "Wh-What did you say?" I ask.

"I asked if you would like to come over later. Maybe around seven or something?" I nod my head, smiling as I did. I realize that Ryo can't see me, so I verbalize my acceptance. Ryo gives me the details and kisses me off. The phone line cuts off and I'm standing where I am, shaking. My mother comes up behind me and attacks me with a hug. "When do I drop you off?" she asks.

**Sho's POV**

I'm still typing at my computer when my mother comes in, dressed in a black cocktail dress and sticking diamond studs in her ears. I barely notice her other than the change of light in my room. I had gotten off the computer in the morning and at noon to eat and occasionally to use the bathroom, but I ate as fast as I could without choking and made the restroom trips as short as I possibly could. I've been too engorssed with what I'm doing to even turn on the light, which is what my mother does. That's how I know she's in the room.

I feel her kiss my cheek. "What are you typing?" she asks me. I mutter an answer. She understands and smiles. My mother ruffles my hair. Normally, I would be angry at her for doing that, but now I don't really care. "Would you let me read it when you're done?" she asks. I nod. My mother seems shocked, but smiles. I have never let anyone in my family, not even Makoto, read anything that I have written. I was thinking, back when I lived with Judai, to show him some of the things that I had written. I decided not to in the end, figuring that the stories I had written were too personal. I was afraid that he would know what I was writing about almost instantly. No matter how dense Judai may be, he is still able to think. My mother kisses me on the head again. "We'll be back by midnight." My mother leaves the room so that she could go out to a cocktail party her boss is throwing. She's taking with her Dad and Uncle Jeremiah and staying out pretty late.

Mom closes the door and I look at the built-in clock that my computer has. It reads six o'clock.

* * *

I have finally pulled myself away from the computer screen long enough to eat again. I've gotten a headache, so I'm giving myself a break from staring at a computer screen. I pull the cup of insta-noodles out of the microwave and blow on the steam that comes off of the noodles. I take a fork and head into the living room. I turn on the television and start watching the news. I can't keep my mind on it, though. Amost instantly my mind wanders to the next plot twist in the story, something I need to change, a different word, an altered sentence. I've never been this engrossed in something I've written before. I assume that if anyone passed by me, they would assume I was hypnotized from the way I'm just staring so blankly at the moving pictures on the television screen. 

"Sho." I turn my head to Onii-san. He's wearing nice clothing, as if he was going out somewhere to meet someone important. He's staring at me with crossed arms. I stop eating and answer, "Yes, Nii-san?"

"Judai is coming over" he tells me. My heart stops beating for a moment. "I want you to stay out of our way, okay? No coming into a room we are in, no speaking to us, no trying to spy on us. Do you understand?"

I stare at the white carpet. It doesn't surprise me that my brother would invite Judai over when our parents aren't in. Our parents would throw a fit if they heard him and Judai making love. At least they had never walked in on Onii-san like I have. That is a mortifying experience.

In all my life, and in all of Onii-san's social history, I've walked on him three times. The first time, he was with a girl. I was coming up to ask him whether or not he wanted pizza for dinner, since our parents were out that night. I had opened his door and saw him over a girl from his class, his hips moving backward and forward, his shoulder blades nearly busting out of his back. I stayed the whole time he and she were doing it, too interested to leave but too horrified to stay. I eventually tore myself away and ran for my room.

The second time I walked in on Onii-san, it was with a guy. I had heard noise from upstairs and decided to check it out. I had cracked the door open to see the same thing as the first time I walked in on Onii-san, but only there was a guy underneath him. And instead of feeling horrified, I felt...turned on. I had torn myself away from the sex before they ended, unlike the first time. Only because I had gotten a boner and didn't know what I would have told my brother when he saw my tent. That's when I discovered the horrible truth of my sexuality, something that I had been both a gift on some fronts and a curse on others.

I look up at my brother now. He was going to try to get Judai to have sex with him again. He'd done it before in my room, why not in his room where it should rightfully happen? I ask, "When is he coming over?"

"In about ten minutes" Onii-san tells me. That means I need to be out of the room as soon as I possibly could. I tell him that as soon as I'm done my dinner, I'll leave. Onii-san glares at me and walks out of the room. I look at the cup of noodles that I had made. I've only gotten through half of it. Tears choke my throat. I don't feel like eating any more. I don't feel like doing anything at the moment, except typing on the computer. I throw away my noodles and head to my room.

**Judai's POV**

My mother drops me off yelling at me through the window. "I'll be back at ten!" I walk up to the door as fast as I can, but before I reach the door, my mother screeches, "Make good choices!" I freeze and don't move until I hear her drive away. I shake my head. I continue walking up to the door where Ryo opens it as soon as I touch the porch. He's smiling, and that makes me blush. I smile back and push my hands into my pockets. Ryo kisses me on the list and pulls me into his home.

"Sorry about my mom" I say.

Ryo shakes his head. "She seems exactly like you."

I nod. "My grandad says the same thing." Ryo leads me to the couch and shows me some of the videos that he has in his home. I agree to one and he puts it on. He turns off some of the lights and pulls me into a one-armed embrace and pulls me to his chest. I smile and blush, but again, the way he holds me doesn't seem like it's right. Like something is missing. I ignore the feeling and enjoy watching the movie in the dark.

* * *

Ryo kisses down my bare chest. His hands run up and down my arms. My eyes are closed and my arms can't seem to move from my side. His hands leave my arms and fiddle with the button and the zipper on my pants. I sigh and relax as his tongue dives into my belly button. I twitch when he moves his mouth from my abdomen to my neck. There, he kisses and bites and leaves little territory markers. I'm his territory and my body is his plaything. My eyes slide open a little. Ryo has stripped himself naked and is doing the same thing to me right now. "Wait" I say. Ryo looks up at me. "Ryo," I whisper, "do you love me?" 

I don't know why I asked him that. I just want to know. Somehow, it just makes the act better if I know that he loves me and would always love me. Ryo smirks. Not smiling, but smirking. That alone tears my heart and I don't even listen to the lie I know he's telling me. I can't stop him from taking off my boxers and lifting my legs. I can't stop my arms from embracing him and my body reacting to his stimulation the way it always will react. And I can't stop my tears from falling over the sides of my face and onto the pillow below me.

**Sho's POV**

_Thump. Thump. Thump._

I hate that noise.

_Thump. Thump. Thump._

I hate that noise.

_Thump. Thump. Thump._

Dear God, make it stop, please!

I stand up and run out of my room. I haven't even saved the progress I've made in my story. I just need to get away from that noise. Downstairs it is not as bad, but I can still hear it. I hold my hands to my ears. I sit on the couch and put my head between my legs. I've never liked the noise of my brother making love to someone, but I've always been able to handle it. But not now. Never when it's Judai that Onii-san is doing this to. Never when it's someone that I like. Not when it was Pippa and I had that crush on her. I've never liked it and I never will.

"Make it stop, please" I plead. Tears starts falling down my cheeks and staining my glasses and face.

I wait a minute, then take my hands off of my ears. I sigh. They've stopped. They've finally stopped. My bottom lip trembles before forming a smile. I wipe my eyes and remove my glasses. I take out a tissue from the box nearby and start to wipe down the lenses. I place them back on the table and curl up on the couch. I blink, suddenly tired. Emotional blows are worse than physical or mental blows. Emotional blows rest on your soul for as long as you have it. Mental blows, though, you can forget and physical blows you can heal.

My eyes close and my hands curl up under the pillow that I have found. I dig my cheek into the softness and I gradually begin to nod off. Just as sleep has nearly embraced me and taken me away, the doorbell rings. I twitch, not wanting to move. The doorbell rings again. I sit up and rub my eyes. The doorbell rings three more times by the time I get over to the door and open it. On the stoop is a beautiful young woman with thick brown hair and sparkling brown eyes. I squint up at her, since I have forgotten my glasses, and determine that she is here to pick up Judai.

"Hello" she says with a nice smile. "Are you Sho?"

I nod. "Yes. Are you here for Judai?" The woman nods. I ask her to step inside while she waits. She agrees and takes off her shoes as she stands on the mat. I ask her if she is thirsty, but she insists she isn't. I shrug and wait for her to say something. I don't bother to get my glasses, since she is really only going to be here for a few minutes. The woman looks around. Eventually she turns back to me. "Sho," she says, "I know I really shouldn't be butting into his business, but I want to talk to you about Judai."

"What about him?" I ask.

"Well, nothing much," she says. "It's just, he's told me about your fight at the Academy. The one about you moving out."

I freeze. He told this woman? His...mother? Sister? Cousin? I don't know who she is to him, but that doesn't matter to me at the moment. What does matter is that she knows about the fight and she wants to talk to me about it. I gulp. "What is it?" I ask.

"Well, he seems worried about the whole thing. I mean, he cares about you and wants to make everything pleasent and fair and stuff like that. But I think he's being too giving. I mean, it seems like he'd break up with Ryo for you." My heart leaps. Would he really do that? No. He wouldn't. Even if that was true, Judai would never leave Ryo. At least, he'd never leave him for me. "I just want to ask you that, maybe, just let him enjoy being with Ryo. Maybe, you could move back to the room?"

It could be that I'm tired or it could be that I'm just stupid and prone to verbal diarhea, but I say the next thing with as much anger and ruthfulness as possible for me. "I'll move back into the room once Judai and Onii-san stop fucking in it."

The world stops. Mountains crumble. Rivers simultaneously dry up to nothing. The universe cracks apart. Everything falls apart at the magic words I have just said. "What did you just say?" she whispers. I stand as still as possible. Maybe, if I don't move, she won't notice me. It's a crappy idea, but it's the best thing I can think up at the moment. The woman takes my shoulders and yells at me. "What do you mean once they stop fucking?"

Judai walks down the stairs and steps up to the woman. He is fully clothed but his skin is gently shimmering and his hair is messed up. "Hey Mom, are you ready to go?" Onii-san walks down the stairs to witness with me the fury of Judai's mother. The vice grip that seems to nearly break Judai's arm and how she yelled at the top of her lungs, "Judai, I am so going to kill you. You are grounded for the rest of the vacation. I will never let you out of the apartment ever again. Do you hear me?" Judai is stunned and is roughly pulled out. Onii-san closes the door and looks at me.

"What did you do?" he asks me.

I stare at the ground. I don't say anything, but Onii-san doesn't need me to. He knows that I am the reason behind Judai leaving. He walks by me and leaves me to cry and sleep on the couch for the night.

* * *

_And that's another chapter I can scratch off of my list. Hmmm...is it just me, or is Ryo getting crueler and crueler? Oh well. It all just builds up for his monolouge later in the story. Yes, I'm gonna give the evil man a time to talk. But it shows his side of this whole tragedy, so deal with it man. _

_Remember to leave your reviews at the door. Thank you._


	12. not my mistake

_Hello! How is ya'll doing? Hey guys, guess what? I'm updating. But...you knew that. Anywho, here's the next chapter to _It's Just Not Fair_, formerly known as _Nobody Loves Me_, I title that I seriously hated but didn't know what to replace it with. Soooooooooooo...yeah... That's it for now. Later dudes!_

**ac-the-brain-supreme does not own Yugioh GX. If she did own Yugioh GX, Daichi would have switched to the insane light freaks side because he wanted to show his devotion to Jun. Hey...that's a good story idea... **

**She now owns that idea, so if she finds anyone stealing it, she will hunt you down and rip out your large intestine!**

* * *

The car ride home was quiet and uncomfortable. My mother didn't ask me how things went, what Ryo and I did, why my hair was worse off than before I went. She just kept her hands on the wheel and her eyes on the road. I didn't understand why she wasn't saying anything, but I guessed it was because she was angry at something. Maybe she was angry at...me? But why would she be angry at me? Did I not clean my room the way she likes it or did she find out my grades or...

Or does she know about me and Ryo? Does she know that we've slept together? That we had slept together just minutes before she came? Did Sho tell her? My blood freezes. I feel angry at Sho, but not as angry as I should. I mean, if he **did** tell my mother that I was sleeping with my boyfriend, then shouldn't I feel the need to strangel him? But I don't.

My mother parks the car and, still not speaking to me, gets out of the car. I follow her, not saying anything either. Kami, my ass hurts. I hope my mother doesn't notice that I'm limping around. She's in front of me, so she probably won't. I release a silent sigh of relief. But my ass still hurts. It hurts like hell. And that sucks. That sucks real bad.

My mom and I get up to the apartment. Now I know why she was silent the entire way home. She was preparing a speech that she wanted to wait until we got to a more comfortable, more familiar environment before laying it all out for me. Now that we're home, she's not going to hold back. "I had a little conversation with Sho" my mother says as she sits on the couch. Her eyes are full of anger and her legs are crossed, as well as her arms. "It was quite enlightening." I look down at the floor. "Judai," she says, trying to catch my attention. That doesn't work, since the cheap, brown carpet is soooooooo interesting. I hear my mom sigh. "Judai, when you told me about you and Sho's fight, you didn't tell me the whole story, did you?" Hesitantly, I shake my head. "What kinds of things did you leave out?"

I know what she's looking for. She's looking for a confession that I had slept with Ryo. Instead, when I answer her, what comes out of my mouth is this: "That Sho really, really likes me."

My mother freezes. She shakes her head. "No, not that. But I'll talk to you about that later. Right now, I want to speak to you on something I believe I gave a lecture on not too long ago." She looks at the ceiling, a finger on her chin. "Now, what was that very embarrassing talk with the whiteboard about? Do you remember, my sweet Judai?" I nod. "Can you tell me?"

"Sex" I say, blushing.

"Yes. Sex, reproduction, physical and emotional changes, depression, sexually transmitted diseases, among other things." My mother glares at me. "How do you forget something so traumatic?" My mother yells. I flinch and don't answer. My mother stands up. "Judai, have you been sleeping with Ryo?" I stand still. "Did you sleep with him in your and Sho's room? Could that be why he moved out, became angry at you, and doens't want to be your friend anymore?"

I look down. "Maybe."

"Maybe?" My mother growls. "Judai, how stupid a decision could you make? Have you any idea how much trouble you've put yourself in?" My mother stands in front of me and stamps her foot. "Do you want to make the same stupid decision I made?"

I look up at her. My brows furrow. "Mistake?" I repeat. "What mistake?" My mother freezes. She turns and walks away. "Nothing" she says. "Just something I really regret doing."

I wonder: What would she really regret doing? Well, it had to be something that really screwed up her life, or else she wouldn't regret it. My mother rarely regrets anything, after all. "Does it have something to do with you and my dad?" I ask. My mother stills again. She doesn't answer, because she just doesn't have the strength. But I know, in her mind, the answer is "Yes". My heart stops. "Am I your mistake?" My mother turns towards me, fear in her eyes. "Absolutely not!" She claims.

She's telling the truth. I know she is. But I just don't want to admit it. "I am, aren't I?" My mother shakes her head. I turn my back on her. "Gee Mom, thanks for finally admitting the biggest regret of your life! I bet it makes you feel a hell of a lot better, doesn't it?"

"Judai, no." My mother's voice is soft and worrying. "Y-You've misunderstood me." My mother places her hand on my shoulder. I shake myself away and run into my room and lock the door. I hear my mother calling my name. I sit with my back against the door, which I locked as soon as I got in here. I pull my legs up to my chest and wrap my arms around them. I hear my mother as she pounds on the door. I cover my ears. Why can't she just go away and leave me alone? I don't want her to be right.

"Judai, Judai, please open this door" my mother pleads.

"NO!" I shout. Kami, I sound like a little kid.

My mother sighs. I can hear her as well as her back slides down the door and she lands on her own butt. At least she doesn't feel a thousand fires blazing about in her rectum. Lucky. "Judai, you're not my mistake" my mother says. "In fact, you're my dream-come-true." I lean my head back so that the top of my hair is touching the white paint. "Ever since I was a little girl, I wanted to be a mother. I would dress up all my baby dolls in bonnets and put them in a little stroller and walk them all around the yard my parents had." I pick up my nearby deck and look through, listening to my mother's story as I look, find, and hold my faveorite card in the world, Hane Kuriboh. "Your grandparents' divorce had just been finalized when I first started going out with your father. Your grandmother was on the brink of insanity, especially after your aunt became pregnant with Jasmine with that Indian boy."

I unlock my door and open it. My mother turns her head and sees me and the tears I've failed to keep inside. I crawl up next to her and she takes me in her arms, closing the door behind us so that we have something to lean on. My mother pats my head. "Your father made me forget what was going on at home."

"Did you love him?"

"I did."

"Did...did he love you back?"

My mother hesitates. "He did. I truly believed he did and I still do today." My mother put her forehead in my mass of brown locks. "I was the one who made the first advances. I was the first to kiss the other, I was the one who spurred him on, I was the one who told him I wanted him to...you know. It was because I wanted to be his wife. I wanted to have his children. I wanted the marriage my parents didn't have. But, at the same time, I was putting both you and me at stake. That was my mistake. My mistake was never and will never be giving birth to you. My mistake was having sexual relations with a man who had been around the block a few times and been with Kami knows how many woman." My mother breaths deeply. "Oh, Judai. Just imagine if he had herpes or...or worse. You could have been born sick or with a defect or...or I may have miscarried." My mother pulls us away from each other for a moment. "Judai, I don't want you to put your body at stake for something so fleeting as sex, because the possiblity always lingers."

My eyes widen. My mom doesn't need to say what that other possibility might be.

What if Ryo isn't the one?

**Sho's POV**

It's the day after Onii-san's date with Judai, and the first fight in the house is, surprisingly, between Mom and me.

"Sho!" My mom whines. "You promised!"

"MOOOOOOOOOOM!" I whine in response.

My dad's head peeks through the open door of my room. He's almost exactly the same as Uncle Toru, except his eyes are as bright blue as they were when he was little and he's a little taller and he doesn't look sickly. "What's going on?" He asks.

My mom stands up. "Oh, Sho won't let me read what he wrote!"

"W-Well...it's not done, okay?" I say.

"But you're printing it out" my mom says.

I look at the printer. It's true. The white sheets of paper that come spitting out have my latest work on it. But I'm also right, I'm not done writing it yet. I don't know how it ends, which would make my mother go insane if she read it. She needs an ending to everything. I turn to my dad. He's taking up the whole of the doorway. He's smiling at us, which I don't understand. "Daddy, get Mommy out of here!" I complain.

My dad begins to respond when Uncle Jeremiah walks by, a Bible in his hands. He says something, in English. He refuses to speak Japanese, even though he's fluent in it just as much as my mom is. I understand what he says. If you can't control my sister, then why'd you marry her? My dad turns around. "What'd you say DuBois?" My dad asks, using Uncle Jeremiah's last name. My uncle doesn't respond. Just walks down the stairs, still reading the Holy Book. My dad closes his eyes and slowly breathes in and out. My mom walks over to where Dad is and places her hand on his shoulder.

Uncle Jeremiah is my mom's little brother. He, like my mom, has blue hair but it's closer to my color and is slowly turning gray. He's also very religious. Extremely religious, in fact. My mom was brought up a Catholic, but her devotion waned after meeting Dad. I think that's what makes Uncle Jeremiah angry at my dad. He stole Mom away from her heritage and her family. That, or because Mom's highlight of her honeymoon was giving birth to Onii-san. Whatever the reason, my uncle hates my dad, my dad hates my uncle, and my mom is stuck between the two.

The phone rings. Mom and Dad leave the room to get it. The printer stops spitting out paper. The stack is about one hundred to one hundred and fifty sheets thick. You'd think that with a story that long I'd have an ending by now. But I don't. I pick up the stack, which is quite heavy. I pick up a paper clip and realize that it's much too small to use in this giant pile. So I look some more and find a binder clip.

My mom comes back into the room. There's a smile on her face. "Phone's for you" she says. I blush. Why would my mom be smiling? "Ah, it's a girl" she says, waving off the blush on my face. I sigh, sort of relived. I take the phone out of her waiting hand, then place the story in it. My mom looks at the stack, then looks at me. "Honey..."

"I did promise" I say. Mom smiles and nods at me.

When I got a call at home, before I left for the Academy, I would pinch myself. When I came home, after had that huge fight with Judai and after my friends deserted me, I wasn't expecting any type of social call. But I was thinking of my ex-friends from Duel Academy. Apparently, I had made friends at that party I never wanted to go to.

* * *

"I didn't think you knew my number" I say, lounging on the couch.

"I didn't" K.C. answers, quite frankly and blandly but with an friendly edge to it. "It took me half-an-hour to find your name and then figure out which 'Marafuji' you were." I smile. "So, little buddy, how are you doing?"

I blush. K.C. saw me at my worst that night and she doesn't care. She just wants to know that I'm not still crying my eyes out. "I'm pretty good. I've sort of been keeping my distance from Judai."

"Ah," the brunette on the other line says. "I see why you'd want to do that." We're silent. "So...Jessah and I are going out to shop in about two hours. Wanna come with?"

"Of course he would!"

"MOM!"

"Sorry."

"Heh heh. My mom does the same thing when I'm talking to a boy" K.C. tells me. "She's not home now, so that's why you don't hear screaming and cursing."

I laugh. "Well, I guess I'll take my mom's answer. I'd love to come."

"Cool! Where do you live? I'll come pick you up."

"Oh, that's so sweet of you."

"MOM!"

**Judai's POV**

I'm lounging on the couch when my mom comes walking through, scrolling through the caller ID. I look up at her. She glances down on me. "Your boyfriend's last name is 'Marafuji', right?"

"Yeah. Why?" I ask.

My mother pressed the Redial button. "I want to talk to his mother" she tells me. I jump up. "Stay, Limpy."

The night before, my mother had noticed my limp and knew almost instantly that I had done it with Ryo that night. When she noticed it ("Judai, you're limping.") I broke down in tears. I was honestly ashamed and regretful for what I had done, so my mother had let me off. But now, I think, she's getting revenge. And also gave me the nickname "Limpy" which she will not let up on. So I sit back down and listen as my mother talks to Sho's mother and plan to meet one another for dinner that night to talk about their children.

* * *

_Okay, that's the chapter. I wonder what's going to happen while Sho's out shopping with K.C. and Jessah. I wonder what the moms are going to talk about. _

_Review if you want to know what happens too!!! Later!_


	13. new friends

_Damn...this is a long chapter..._

_Anywho...I have updated! Yay! _

_AND spring vacation started today! Double yay!_

_And I got gold honors for my report card! Triple Yay!_

_Now, before I find more things to "yay" over, I shall let you read the chapter._

**ac-the-brain-supreme does not own Yugioh GX. neither does she own American Idol. Don't ask me where that came from, but if she did own it, she would have kicked off Mr. Sanjaya Malakar a long, long time ago.**

* * *

I'm pulling on my shoes, waiting patiently and anxiously for K.C. to come by. I walk out the door and sit on the steps, not wanting K.C. to be faced with the embarrassment that is my mother's happiness for me. I look at my watch. She's not supposed to be here for another fifteen minutes. I sigh. I scooch down a step and then lean back, lying flat on my back as best I can. The sun is bright and hot, making me relax and close my eyes slowly.

I hear the door open, then close. I open one eye. There, standing above me, is Uncle Jeremiah. I sit up instantly, a little frightened. "U-Uncle Jeremiah! Uh...um...hi!" I say. Uncle Jeremiah raises an eyebrow. He's a little confused. I can tell from his expression and what he sort of asks. English?

I nod. "Yeah. I mean, since you're not speaking in Japanese, then it's only, um, respectable that I talk to you in English." I pause. "At least, that's how I see it."

Uncle Jeremiah blinks. He crosses his arms over his chest and looks at the road. I look at the road as well. My house is kind of odd, but not as odd as Uncle Tohru's. My house has white siding and a black roof. It's three stories and in an American style. My mom said her father had built it for when they came to Japan on vacation. Aunt Cali, my mom's deceased sister, was supposed to have gotten it, but her will stated that the house go to Mom, giving her a real house instead of the apartment they used to live in. There's also a nice, green front yard with a rod-iron gate and fence and shrubs.

Who are you waiting for? Uncle Jeremiah asks.

"My friend K.C." I tell him, still using the English language.

Uncle Jeremiah nods. Is she from that school you just came from. The one that teaches you--Uncle Jeremiah flinches--how to play a card game.

I shake my head. "No. I met K.C. at a party my cousin Makoto took me to."

The girl who beat up that one boy?

I blush. "Yes. The girl who beat up that one boy."

He shakes his head. She seems like a bad influence.

I stand up, angry that my uncle would talk about my family like that. "Makoto was only trying to stand up for me! She's a really nice girl, she's just a little quick-tempered!" I wait until my uncle is looking at me. "And she is not a bad influence."

Uncle Jeremiah blinks. If you insist, he says. But...

"But what?" I ask.

But I guess there are even worse influences living under your own roof.

I blink. Even worse bad influences? I think. Who could he be talking about? I already have a feeling that it's Onii-san he's talking about. Uncle Jeremiah knows enough about Onii-san to know that what he sometimes does is morally object, but he could also be talking about my dad. After all, he's five years older than my mother. He seduced an eighteen-year-old, impregnated her, and eloped with her in a matter of one year. Uncle Jeremiah, as I was told, was so against the marriage that he was threatening to bash in my father's head. Thankfully, that didn't happen.

"Who are you talking about?" I ask.

Uncle Jeremiah doesn't answer. Instead, he says, Your friend is here.

I look, and sure enough K.C. was climbing out of a car and walking up to the rod iron gate.

* * *

I think I found a mother that's worse than my own.

K.C.'s mother was driving the car when I got picked up. I had to sit in the backseat, next to K.C. who was next to Jessah. Jessah gave me a quick glare, which made me shrink in my seat. K.C. leans over to her friend and begins to whisper to her, probably telling her to leave me alone or something. I feel the corner of my lips twitch upwards.

"So," Ms. Markovitch says to start up a conversation, "Sho, what's your family like? I mean, do you have any brothers or sisters..."

"I have one brother Ma'm. His name is Ryo."

"Really?" she asks. She smiles. "Was that the person you were waiting with?"

I shake my head. "No. Actually, that was my Uncle Jeremiah. He's visiting from America."

"Your part American? Wow. I went to America once!" Ms. Markovitch nods off into a memory for a moment. I sit still, not sure whether or not to say something. I turn to K.C. and Jessah. K.C. has a finger over her mouth, telling me to stay quiet. I nod, a little unnerved. Did K.C. not like her mother or something? I look at the red-haired woman who's driving the car.

She doesn't look anything like K.C. Ms. Markovitch's skin is a lighter tone than K.C.'s and her hair is red, something completely different from K.C.'s brown, and their eyes are different colors, and their face's aren't built the same way. All-in-all, K.C. is the stunning recreation of whoever her father is.

"So," Ms. Markovitch continues, "where do you go to school?"

"Duel Academy" I answer with some pride. It's only one milisecond later that I realize the warning hands that Jessah and K.C. had put up for me. I look at them oddly. K.C. is covering her eyes and Jessah is letting out a silent sigh.

Ms. Markovitch is very quiet. It's a scary kind of silent. The kind that is pregnant with the anger that is emanating from Ms. Markovitch's soul. I scrunch further into my seat. I don't like what might be coming next.

"Duel Academy" Ms. Markovitch says slowly, precisely. I look to K.C. and Jessah. They look frightened too. "That's that school built by Kaiba Corp., isn't it?" I nod. "Hmph. Seems like a waste of money to send someone there. After all, it's a friggin' game. A school for a friggin' game! Something you can learn in your own friggin' house! Something that only increases the millions of dollars that bastard Seto Kaiba already has! I mean, how friggin' rich is he? Damn бога оно!(1)"

"Mom!" K.C. shouts. A second later, we're across an intersection and two cars have an accident, barely a foot away from the tail pipe of our car. K.C. and Jessah turn around to see the close call. I'm too frightened to even shake. Ms. Markovitch keeps driving, silent yet again. There are no more questions, there are no more attempts at conversation. There is just plain, frightening silence.

The three of us that were sitting in the backseat climb out, facing the cement glory that is the outside shopping mall. Jessah and K.C. act like they've seen it all before, but I'm pretty new to this. There is a big fountain in the front, with people and benches circling it. There are two rows of shops, all the same bland cream color. There is a median of palm trees and shrubs and grass that create two lanes of walking teens and parents with their little children.

"What's wrong?" Jessah asks. "You act like you've never gone to a mall before."

I shrug. "I haven't."

Jessah and K.C. give each other a glance. "You haven't?" K.C. asks. I shake my head. I feel a hand on my arm. I look to see, with surprise, that it's Jessah holding onto my arm, a big grin on her face. "Well, little dude, you're in for a magical time! For here, in our lovely mall, there are stores that will send you into shock!" Jessah points forward, her arm like a guiding beam that aims us for the shops as the tall blonde starts at a run. I hear K.C. give a short laugh and run after us, deciding to run besides me as Jessah leads us down the lane.

**Judai's POV**

Things are stuffy in the car as we drive over to Ryo and Sho's house. My mother is beside me, occasionally glancing over in my direction. I'd rather not say anything. Especially since I don't know if Sho is going to be at his house or not. Of course, it would be totally awkward if Ryo was there while my mother and I were, but it's Sho I want to avoid. After that kiss, and after he told my mom what me and Ryo were doing, I don't think I'd ever have the courage to see him again.

The car rolls up infront of the large, comfortable Marafuji household. I look at my watch. It's six o'clock and dinner begins between six-thirty and six-fifteen. I look up at my mom, who looks down on me and smiles. "It won't be as bad as you think, Limpy." I twitch. "As long as you and Ryo don't go running off upstairs or anything, you may be able to go out of the house without me by your side."

I blink. "As long as it's not with him?"

Mom walks up the path and to the door. "As long as it's not with him." I follow my mother and wait a little behind her as she knocks on the door. A minute later, a blue-haired silver-eyed woman answers the door. It's the same woman from the party and I flinch, trying to sneak behind my mother. I don't have any visible bruises, at the moment, but anyone is smart enough to equate me to the boy who was beaten up by Makoto.

The woman lifts her hand. "Hello, you must be Autumn" she says with a smile and a light note.

My mother nods. "And you must be Starr." My mother takes Mrs. Marafuji's hand and shakes it.

"That I am. Oh, please, come inside." My mother nods and walks in. Mrs. Marafuji gasps as she sees me. "Oh! I...I didn't know you were bringing Judai."

My mother turns to Mrs. Marafuji, still taking off her shoes. "Why, yes. Is there a problem with that?"

Mrs. Marafuji shakes her head. "No, not really. It's just that both Ryo and Sho are out with their friends."

My ears perk. Sho has friends here? I thought he said that he always had trouble making friends. Well...I guess that doesn't mean he _doesn't_ have friends. I guess it really just means that he has a really hard time making them. Though, when he and I became friends, he didn't really realize that I had officially considered him my friend. Sho always stuttered and muttered. It took a week for it to really sink in that he had made a friend. And then it took about a month for him to realize he was in love with his friend, if I'm right about my hunch of that he fell in love--or at least began crushing--with me and Ryo's duel.

Of course, I could always be wrong and he fell in love with me at first sight. I warm feeling settles over me. The thought never occured to me before that someone could fall in love at first sight. Not even with Ryo and me.

"Judai." I break from my far-off world to the one I'm in. I scratch my head. "Uh...yes Mom?"

"Judai, did you hear what Mrs. Marafuji asked?" my mom asks.

I shake my head. "I'm sorry, but no."

Mrs. Marafuji shakes her head. "It's not problem, boys are always spacing out around that age." Mrs. Marafuji gives a girlish giggle. "I asked whether it was okay that we ate seperately."

I nod. "That is completely fine with me!" I say.

Mrs. Marafuji giggles again. "Good. I hope you don't mind your mother and I sit outside, then?" I nod. "Fantastic!" Mrs. Marafuji exclaims with a clap of her hands. "Then let me get some plates out and we can get food. Oh! And Judai..." I nod. "My brother, Jeremiah, is here. He's very quiet and speaks only in English. Don't be bothered if he doesn't speak if you see him, okay?"

I nod. "It's no problem Mrs. Marafuji" I say. She smiles and nods before turning to my mother and walking off with her. I frown. Actually, there is something of a problem.

I can't speak English.

**Sho's POV**

I can't believe how much money girls can spend in a period of three hours. I can't believe that girls need every last little bangle they find in a shop. And I definitely can't believe that I'm sitting at a three-person table with a huge hot fudge sundae in the middle with two girls I met barely a few days ago. Girls who are calling me their friend and treating me as such too.

"Seriously," Jessah continues, "chocolate-chip cookies and nacho cheese taste good together."

"Ugh, you are _so_ weird!" K.C. laughs. She turns to me. "Do you have anything to say to this?"

I swallow the spoonfull of vanilla ice cream. "Peanut butter, grape jelly, and cream cheese sandwiches."

Jessah pauses for a moment. "Hey, that doesn't sound all that bad!"

K.C. sticks her tongue out. "You two are both disgusting!"

Me and Jessah begin laughing, and soon K.C. joins in.

**Judai's POV**

Yummy.

Yummy, yummy, yummy.

I couldn't believe someone could cook this well. Especially since my mom is the worst cook ever born. But this...this is a good home-cooked meal. I lean back, patting my stomach after my third bowlful. I close my eyes. This is the life.

My mother's laugh floats from the patio. The sound of the TV lulls me along further into sleep. There is a sound of someone walking down the stairs, across the room I'm in, and towards the kitchen. Then the footsteps stop. They come closer to me, stop, and then they walk away. I open an eye. The man that is walking around is just as tall as my mother, with short, neat light blue-gray hair and a straight back. I sit up. Is this Jeremiah? Wow...everyone in Sho's family must have that kind of look. At least, everyone in Sho's mother's side.

Jeremiah turns around, a bowl of his own in his hands, and walks over to the armchair near where I am sitting. He crosses his legs and begins to eat, watching the television show that's being played. I turn back to the TV, but my eyes can't help but trail over to Jeremiah. He's so neat and proper. It's kind of scary. I see something gold shine on his neck. Jewelry? Why would he be wearing jewelry? His eyes are the same color as Sho's.

Something pricks at my heart. Sho...

What are you staring at me?

I blink. I scratch my head. Since Jeremiah can only speak English, could that mean he only understands English. I have a short moment of panic, before deciding to introduce myself. Boy, is this going to be tough. I lean forward and point at myself. "My name Juu-dai" I say, in English.

Jeremiah lifts an eyebrow. He copies my actions. My name Jer-eh-my-uh, he says. Jeremiah leans back in his chair and begins to eat his food again.

I slump in my chair. "Rude bastard," I whisper, in Japanese.

So I have been so often told, he says.

I lift my head. "Y-You understand Japanese?" I ask.

Jeremiah blinks. Yes, he answers. I have been to Japan once a year ever since I was born. Hell, I think I was conceived here.

"Ew. Too much information" I say.

Jeremiah nods. Oh, he adds, you don't need to introduce yourself. I know who you are. Jeremiah narrows his eyes. You're the little boy Ryo is sleeping with this season.

I shiver. "This season?" I ask. "What does that mean?"

Jeremiah leans forward. You know, he says, this used to be my family's summer home. When my father died, his will left it to my older sister, Arianna. When she died, she left it to Starr. Jeremiah bends his head. I furrow my brow. What the hell is he talking about? Jeremiah lifts his head again. In all my years spent here, I have learned one thing and one thing only. That the patio chairs are positioned just so no one is looking at the rose bush right outside the French doors.

I blink. It takes a minute to realize, but I finally get it. I stand up quick. "Thanks Jerry."

Jeremiah turns his head. Don't call me that. Only my sisters can call me that.

I ignore this statement and hurry quietly towards the patio doors. I peek my head out, seeing my mother and Mrs. Marafuji not far off, and just like Jeremiah said, neither of them is looking this way. I see the rose bush. It's actually a long hedge with a hole in it so you can get to the patio, but otherwise, the lush bush is surrounding the table so that it would be very hard to see. I get on my hands and knees and crawl over, coming closer and closer to the talking woman.

I'm lucky that the patio entrance is not facing my mother and her new friend. But it still puts me in danger of being seen. Thankfully, I'm lucky and no one knows that I have positioned myself perfectly so that I can hear every spoken word.

"Personally, I'm glad Judai has found himself a boyfriend" my mother states. "I'm just really worried. I mean, you know first love, don't you?"

"Ah, yes. First love." I hear Mrs. Marafuji sigh. "I remember mine. I was thirteen and in New York. It was the boy sitting next to me in math class."

My mother laughs. "Mine was the guy living next door to the children I babysat." Mrs. Marafuji and my mother begin laughing loudly. I feel my heart ache.

"Well," Mrs. Marafuji continues, "at least we know what happens so we can pass on the knowledge to our little miracles."

"Yes. But when do they ever listen?"

"When their father is yelling." Mrs. Marafuji giggles again. "I bet your husband doesn't get as much grief as mine does, with only one son in the house and all."

"Actually, I'm not married. And Judai's father...well..."

"He's out of the picture?"

My mother is quiet. "He was. He tried to be back, which I was grateful for, but...things happen."

"Ah, I see."

"Yes. Now, after pulling total three-sixty, I'm glad that Judai has a boyfriend, I'm just so worried."

"Mmm...I know." Things are silent again. "Ryo seems to have a problem with...being physical."

"Physical?" my mother repeats.

"Yes. You see, Ryo has had so many boyfriends and girlfriends that I'm afraid I've only met maybe half of them."

"Oh dear."

"Yes. I've tried to talk to him, but he doesn't listen all that well. Even when his father speaks to him, which is especially odd since they used to get along so well." Silence again. "Anyway, I hope that my other son, Sho, can get over this. I mean, he and Judai were close."

"I know. And after that fight they had, Judai just feels so bad about it."

"And Sho is even worse. I mean, this is the second time that Ryo has taken the heart of someone Sho likes."

"Wait...Sho likes Judai?"

And here is my cue to leave!

**Sho's POV**

"No! No!" Ms. Markovitch yelled into her cell phone. "No! I told you not to do that!...Yes, I did say that, but I also said you couldn't do that other thing!" Ms. Markovitch is silent again. "What do you mean I'm contradicting myself?!" She sighs. "Did you at least get a contract out of her?" Pause. "She wants to see other companies? Damn it! Do you know what that means? It means she wants a bigger name! Argh!"

I look at K.C., who is sitting in the front seat. K.C. looks back at me and Jessah. She gives us an apologetic smile and a shrug. Jessah leans over to me. "Ms. Markovitch runs a publishing company. They're pretty small, so she doesn't have many authors signed to her, and a lot of them want to sign with larger names."

I nod. It makes sense to me. I mean, how dissapointing to work so hard and still not be able to succeed. Especially if it's your job to land things.

The car stops at my house. Ms. Markovitch is still talking on her cell phone, so I just get out of the car, not wanting to be rude. I collect my shopping bags and then say goodbye to my new friends. K.C. and Jessah wave goodbye and I walk up the path that splits the front lawn and walk into my house. "Mom! Dad! Uncle! I'm home!" I shout. I walk into the living room, where my Uncle Jeremiah is.

And where Judai has just stepped into my house.

* * *

(1) Russian--God damn it!

* * *

_Hee hee! Judai and Sho are in one room! And Jeremiah is stuck in there as well. Will Judai do anything? Will Sho let anything happen? And will the mothers come in soon? I mean, c'mon, they had to hear Sho as he shouted! _

_Anywho, come back next...update...and read more! Kay?_


	14. the door between two rooms

_HAHA! Yes! I have updated. And this chapter is so steamy! Makes me pray to God that my mother, who is sitting next to me, doesn't look at this. She's seen what I've written before. That DID NOT go over very well. _

_Anywho...I hope you all enjoy._

**ac-the-brain-supreme does not own Yugioh GX. She wants Yugioh GX doujinshi. She searches for it a lot. But NOPE!!! None so far. Guess she just has to wait for Otakon.**

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Judai is here, in my house? Oh...Oh my God. What am I going to do? I can't stay here. Actually I could, but I'd rather not. Wait...why's he here anyway?

Ugh! I'm asking myself too many questions.

"Uh...Ah, hello Judai; how are you?"

Judai looks at the carpet, kicks it. "I'm pretty good. And you?"

I shrug. "Okay." I turn to the staircase. "Well, I'm going to go upstairs and get ready for bed. I hope you have fun while you stay." As soon as I am sure I am out of the living room's sight, I sprint as fast as my little legs can carry me up the stairs. I make a hairpin turn when I hit the landing and continue my journey until I hit the second door to the left.

**Judai's POV**

I stare at the stairs, hearing the sound of Sho as he runs up the stairs, hurries across the second floor, and then slams his bedroom door. My head droops so that I am now looking at the ground. Do I really cause him this much pain? Is he afraid of me now or feel awkward or guilty? I have to find out. I have to make things up to Sho.

Where are you going? Jeremiah asks as I climb the staircase. I can't respond because if I do, Sho could hear me. And if Sho hears me, then he will keep hiding.

I remember what Ryo told me about the upstairs rooms when he took me up here. His and Sho's rooms were connected by a door he kept locked since he had hit puberty because Sho always snuck into his room to crawl into his bed, which was getting too small for the two of them to both be in at the same time. Obviously, there had been a bed upgrade because Ryo's current bed could probably hold three people.

Anyway, Sho and Ryo's bedrooms are connected. And Ryo's is the first one on the left, making, by default, the one next door Sho's.

I stand at the door, looking at it like if I had the power to see through walls. I wish I did. That way, I could see if Sho was able to talk to me without falling to pieces. But I can't look through walls and even if he looked like he was stable never means he truly is.

I turn the door handle and take a step inside. My eyes widen as I see Sho, half-naked. He wasn't kidding when he said that he was getting ready for bed.

Sho blushes. "Judai, get out! Get out right now" Sho demands, pointing to the door.

This is where I hit a crossroads, you see. Right now, my mind is saying, "Yes, okay, I'll leave!" My mind is already out the door, calling to my body, like if it was a little puppy, to follow it.

My heart and...Other things...are telling me to stay. That this was a chance I would rarely ever get to see. "Hell, you've only seen him this naked once: when you were at the hot springs! Weren't you turned on then?" Yes, yes I was. In fact, Sho's slender body was something of a distraction. But it was a beautiful distraction, one greatly appreciated and later forbiddingly dreamed about.

"Aniki! Get out of my room!" Sho shouts.

I close the door, locking out my mind and keeping my heart with me. "No" I say, defiant. "No. I won't leave. Not until you and I have a talk."

"Sure, we can talk later! Just go so I can change!" Sho says hurriedly.

I shake my head. "How do I know that you aren't going to lock the door?" I cross my arms and shake my head. "I'm staying right here."

Sho crosses his arms over his chest. He looks away, his blush growing. I wonder what he's thinking about.

**Sho's POV**

I can't believe he's in my room. And I'm only in my boxers. How can this be happening? Can't he just leave? No, he can't. And do you know why? Because he is Aniki: he is the most stubborn boy you will ever meet. He is the biggest idiot you will ever meet. He is an invincible rock of steadiness that wouldn't budge even if you placed all the elements against him, as well as a nuclear bomb and a couple tons of dynamite that have had too much gunpowder stuffed in them.

And that's one reason why I like him.

**Judai's POV**

I lift my hands. "Sho, please hear me out. I just want to talk to you for just a second."

Sho turns to me, large eyes glittering and innocent. "O-Okay Aniki, just...Just make it quick, okay?"

I nod, of course. "Sho, I know you are angry at me. I would be to. And I did wrong to you. I'm sorry."

Sho nods. "Thank you, now please go."

My heart falls to the floor. "Is that it?" I ask.

Sho nods again. "Yes, that is all I have to say. Thank you for coming now please leave."

I lock the door, and then lean on it. "I'm not going anywhere until you say something to me."

Sho shakes his head. "Aniki, you're being stupid! Just let me get changed."

"Get changed while you talk!" I say. "A monkey can do that!" Hurt passes through Sho's eyes. I cover my mouth. "I'm sorry Sho. I didn't mean that."

Sho shakes his head. "Of course you don't." Sho picks up a shirt from the floor. He raises his arms and slides it over his head and onto his shoulders. I fall a warm sensation rush through my blood, stemming from my heart and spreading to the tips of my fingers and toes. Somehow, just watching Sho doing such menial tasks like putting on his clothes relaxes me.

Once Sho has put on some pajama bottoms, he turns to me. "Okay, now we can talk."

I nod. "You go."

Sho sighs. He looks out his window. "Aniki, I don't know what to say. I sort of said everything on the Island. I was feeling lonely since you and our friends abandoned me and I was feeling hurt because you didn't respect me enough to consider what having sex with _my_ brother in _our_ room would do to me." Sho looks at me. "I know this may sound really stupid, but were you even thinking when you and Ryo walked into our room?"

He makes me sound like I don't think at all. I think! I did think! "I thought you would go to one of our friends'."

Sho climbed on his bed and sat on the edge closer to where I was standing. "I slept on the beach, Aniki."

"You...You did?" I ask.

Sho nods. "That was the last straw, Aniki. I couldn't do that again." Tears form in his eyes. "I never wanted to see you two doing anything close to that ever again."

I sit down next to Sho. "You never wanted to see me again?" I ask.

Sho hesitates. I take this opportunity to bring him to my chest. He's tense for a moment, then relaxes and becomes almost-jelly in my arms. I pull him even closer. I nuzzle and smell his hair, I touch his almost-hidden cheek, and I hear his even breaths.

This feels incredible. I can't believe just holding someone could do this to me. Actually, I kind of can: I remember this feeling from when I was a little kid, afraid of the dark and crying for my mom. Momma would come in, wrap her arms around me like I'm holding Sho, and comfort me. This is the feeling of being comfortable, this is the feeling of knowing nothing wrong is going to happen, this is the feeling that you can only find in two or three people: your parents and the person you love.

**Sho's POV**

"Sho" I pull my head from Aniki's chest. I look up to ask him what he wanted to tell me.

That's when his lips press against mine.

At that moment, my body feels on fire, my mind is completely put to pasture, and I see fireworks and hear bells.

And in a moment, he slowly pulled away and the sounds and sights and numbness fell from me. I take a deep breath, and Aniki brings his lips to mine again. This time, my mind does not reel and I know what is going on. What is going on is that the boy I've loved since...God, I don't know how long, is finally kissing me with the only downside being that he's my brother's boyfriend.

I pull away from Aniki, but he's got a good hold on me. He does notice now that I don't like what he's doing. "Sho, is something wrong?"

I nod. "Yes! There is something wrong. In fact, there is something very wrong!" I shake my head. "Aniki, you are with Onii-san. You just can't start kissing me!"

Aniki's eyes narrow. "But you like this, don't you?"

I open my mouth, ready to vomit lies of how I was repulsed by the action; about how I hated his tender lips against mine and how his warm hands were making my temperature rise about three hundred degrees.

Unfortunately, things do not go the normally do when I open my mouth. Maybe it's because I spout the truth during my bouts of word vomit and this time I wanted to lie. Aniki, fueled by instinct, pulls me into his lap. His hand is in my hair, the other on my lower back. "Kiss me, Sho" Aniki whispers. My mouth falls open again, giving him the chance to kiss me senseless again.

I think about pulling away and I think about running away. I know that if I do, Aniki wouldn't do anything. But I don't. And I don't know why. All I know is that Aniki's kisses are making my senses wild.

I feel the fabric that is hanging off of my body and the hands that are keeping me close to Aniki.

I smell Aniki's shampoo, which, from how it smells, is just plain old Head and Shoulders, something completely different than the school-appointed fruity crap that Duel Academy gives their students every month or every time they run out.

I taste the last thing he ate: beef stroganoff with too much of my mother's home-made gravy.

I hear my heart beat pulse in my ears as well as the click of a nearby door opening.

My eyes bulge. I try to push off of Aniki, but when I get away, I'm only to get a breath before Aniki starts to kiss me again. I push off again, Aniki's hands still in my hair and on my back. "Aniki" I say, hopefully not too loud.

But whether it is because I am a cursed little boy or because I have thin walls between me and Onii-san's room, I can never be too quiet. Meaning the person next door or in the hall can hear me call out to Aniki, who, by the way, is back to kissing me again.

And the door between rooms opens.

And Aniki finally lets me pull away from him.

And Onii-san is staring at the unexplainable predicament he's just walked in on.

* * *

_MUWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!! I AM AN EVIL **BITCH**!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!_

_Now you HAVE to review and you HAVE to read next time! YEAH! ALRIGHT! YAY DRAMA! YAY!_


	15. aftermath

_hey peoples!_

_now, if you know my update schedule--yes, i do have an update schedule--then you should be wondering why this is being updated instead of _Crystal_. Well, I'll tell you why: _

_THIS STORY IS ALMOST OVER!!!! WHOOT!!!!_

_haha...yeah...and I'm gonna miss this story. _

_anyway, off the top of my head, there is only going to be...about five chapters left. Yeah, five chapters. So, with those few chapters left, I'm just going to focus on this for a while. So, if you liked _Crystal, Is This What You Call Friendship?, _or _The Experiment,_ then you will have to wait for updates._

_well, that's it for the info session. let's get onto the story!_

**ac-the-brain-supreme does not own Yugioh GX. She owns this story and all the OCs in this story, meaning until she makes it big and she has her own happy fandom on this site, you can't use them.**

* * *

The car ride home was just as quiet and just as awkward as the ride over to the Marafuji residence. Except now, even if my mom did try to make small talk, which I know for a fact that she wouldn't, I wouldn't even try to answer back. I feel drained, for some reason. I mean, I have had a stressful night with me and Sho making out and Ryo walking in on us as soon as I realized what it was like to really have a kiss with someone you were probably made for.

I've kissed Sho before, at that ill-fated party, and that didn't end very well, but I still felt something. Something I never felt with Ryo, no matter how much he pounded into me. It's actually kind of weird. I've had sex more than my mom has probably ever had, but the only thing that sparks me anymore, or probably at all, is a simple kiss.

"So," my mother tries, "what a night, huh? Very...interesting!"

Yeah, an interesting night.

_Sho and Judai pull away, both afraid of what the new person in the room will do. It takes a while to find out. _

_Ryo stands there, staring at them, or at the floor, it's hard to tell. His head is tipped to the ground and his bangs are covering his eyes. Neither boys on the bed want to move or speak to ask what's wrong. In fact, the only thing that anyone is thinking of at that moment is Judai thinking of his kisses with Sho. _

_"You" Ryo whispers, his voice low and furious. Judai breaks out of his thoughts and stares at the older boy he has been seeing for what seemed like the whole school year. Judai twitches on the mattress. He knows he's going to get yelled at for being unfaithful and he knows that Ryo will probably break up with him and force him out of the house, but Judai dosen't care. Because Judai knows the boy he will get with next would probably be more than willing. _

_Ryo strides over to the bed, fire in his eyes. "Little brat... You son of a bitch!" Judai closes his eyes and covers his head and waits. _

_But the screaming isn't directed towards him. _

_"What the hell gives you the right for you to make a move on my boyfriend!" Judai opened his eyes to see Ryo holding his brother at his eye-height, making Sho's feet dangle below him. Judai's arms dropped to his sides. Ryo's blaming Sho? He's not angry at him?_

_"O-Onii-san...I c-can't breathe" Sho says with a trembling and strained voice. Judai looks at Ryo's hands. He isn't holding Sho's shirt collar, he's holding Sho's throat. Judai gets to his feet. "Stop it Ryo! He seriously can't breathe!" _

_Ryo hears Judai. Though, his way of listening is throwing Sho across the room so that when he hits the ground, the littler bluenette rolls into the wall. "Sho!" Judai cries. The locked door is starting to shake from how hard whoever on the other side is trying to get in. Judai notices this and rushes over to the door just as Ryo reaches Sho and gets a kick into his little brother's stomach. Sho cries out just as Judai unlocks the door. The brunette is nearly thrown out of the way as Jeremiah runs in and pulls Ryo to the floor._

_You brat, Jeremiah shouts at Ryo. How can someone that is practically a man act like such a little boy? _

_Ryo gets onto his feet. "Bastard!" Ryo launches himself at Jeremiah, punching Jeremy in the nose. "Get the hell out of here? What do you know about this kind of stuff?" _

_A hell of a lot more than you do! Jeremiah returns the punch he received by giving Ryo one in the stomach. _

_"I can call child abuse on you for that" Ryo said._

_You drew first blood, Jeremiah says with a smile. That means I have the right to protect myself. _

_Judai watches as Jeremiah and Ryo keep pinching and kicking each other until one of them falls into submission. That's when Judai's mother comes up and asks Judai whether or not he is okay. Judai nods and never looks away from the fight. Mrs. Marafuji is standing between her littler brother and oldest son, yelling at them that they are both being immature and that if she sees either one of them even touch the other, she will break off their hand and cook it for dinner._

Ew_, Judai thinks. The brunette is helped up by his mother. She's still fretting over her only child and is telling him that he is no longer grounded, but is no longer able to see Ryo for the remainder of the break. Of course, she is saying that as a hissed whisper and is made out of her fear that Judai is going to be hurt while with Ryo. _

_"I'm so sorry for what happened, Autumn" Mrs. Marafuji apologizes to Ms. Yuki. The younger of the two woman waves her hand dismissively and smiles, but Judai can tell his mother is frightened out of her mind. The strength of her grip is enough proof, and the bruise that will show tomorrow will brand Judai even after it has turned yellow and finally faded. _

_"It's no problem. Though, I guess it is time to go" Ms. Yuki says. _

_Mrs. Marafuji nods. Judai and his mother are escorted out of the room by Mrs. Marafuji. When the three of them get to the door, Mrs. Marafuji hands Ms. Yuki a binder saying, "I'm sure you're going to like this as much as I did. Maybe even Judai will like it."_

_Ms. Yuki gives a laugh. "Maybe, if he reads it." The two mothers share another laugh before Judain and his mother leave and get into their car._

I stand in the middle of my room, taking off my shoes and socks, getting ready for bed just like Sho was getting ready for bed. I smile. Sho is beautiful. I throw my shirt onto the ground and begin to hum a song that just comes to me. It's a soft, sweet song that I really only hear at night, before I go to sleep. I don't know what it's called, or even whether it is a song someone else created. I just like it.

"What are you humming?" I turn to the door to see my mother standing there, pale-faced and wide-eyed.

"I don't know. It's just a song that always seems to come to me at night time" I say. I don't like the way she is looking at me, so I just look away and continue changing.

"S-So you don't know what it's called or where it came from?" I turn to her. She's not looking at me. It's almost like she refuses to. I feel my heart begin to gain the weight of about three elephants. Over the last few days, she's only done that when a certain subject comes up.

_"He tried to be back in the picture...but...things happen."_

"Maybe it was something Auntie sang to my when I was younger" I say, making up the first thing I could think of since I have a suspicious that my mother and I are both on the same page that I am lying or wrong.

She looks up, though, smiling sweetly and sadly. "Yeah. It must have been. Well, good night Judai. I'm working extra hours tomorrow." My mother walks up to me and kisses me on the forehead before bringing me into a hug. "I love you, Judai."

I hug my mother back, hoping she won't find out what I'm going to do tomorrow. "I love you too, Mom."

**Sho's POV**

My mom has finally left my room. It's twelve o'clock at night and my mother just fucking left my room. I'm not a little kid! I'm fifteen fricking years old. Just because I was nearly strangled by my older brother, had to hear my mom and dad yell at my brother at the top of their lungs, and then finally watched from the safety of the staircase as Onii-san left my house, off to who knows where. I don't need my mom to rock me back and forth on my bed as I cry for everything that went wrong that night. I don't need my mom to whisper to me that it is going to be alright and that she is always willing to talk to me if I need help. I don't need that!

Okay, I do need that. But I don't want my mom to tell me that because she _always _says that. Because that's what moms do. I want someone else to tell me that things are going to be alright. Someone like Judai. Someone who makes me feel good and accepted.

I look at the phone sitting next to my bed. My mom brought it up to my room, just in case.

I take it in my hands and look at it. My fingers tingle as I brush over the buttons that have ten numbers from zero to nine.

I put the phone on my bed. It's late. No one would want the phone ringing this late. No one wants to hear my whiny voice complain about spilt milk.

Just then, the phone rings. I jump a little, thinking how ironic my life is. I ease back into the little dip in the mattress my butt has made. I reach for the phone after three rings and turn it on. Hopefully, my parents or Uncle Jeremiah hadn't been awoken by the ringing. "H-Hello" I stutter into the phone.

"Sho?" It's K.C.

"Hi K.C. How're you doing?"

K.C. sighs, making a staticy noise over the receiver. It makes my ear ring. "My mom came to give me a talk like an hour ago."

"Uh oh" I say playfully. "I guess she's starting to worry about her little girl."

K.C. laughs. "Ah, she always worries about her little girl." We're silent for a moment before she continues. "Actually, it's a more important talk."

"What?"

K.C. grunts. "You know how my mom is a single mom, right?"

I nod. "Yes."

"Well, my mom came up to my room after I changed into my pajamas and sat me down. Then she showed me this letter from my dad."

"Your dad?" I repeat.

"Uh-huh" she responds. "My dad wants to meet me. Just me. But he wants me to bring a friend."

"Why?" I ask.

"I have no idea." Another sigh. "I'm only guessing that it is because he wants as much information on me as possible and is afraid to ask me directly."

"That's kind of stupid."

"Ah, Sho, just because you have a perfect family life doesn't mean that other families don't have problems."

"Hey, my family has plenty of problems!" I defend. It's something stupid to defend, but K.C. is acting like my family is the picture perfect masterpiece it's not.

"How? You have a stay-at-home mom, a dad that actually takes care of you, and a brother who probably treats you a hell lot better than my demon brother."

"I take offense to that."

"Niki! Get your ass off the phone!"

"I wanna talk to Makoto!" Niki screeches.

"Talk to her tomorrow!" K.C. yells back.

"She's not going to be home tomorrow!" Niki complains.

K.C. growls. "I'm having a very important conversation here, little brother!"

"I need to have a very important conversation with Makoto!"

"You two always say the same things! 'I love you.' 'No, I love you more!' 'You're more British than I am.' 'No, you are.'"

"Shut up!" Niki shouts.

"Go to hell!" K.C. retorts.

"Fine, I will! Save me a bed!" There is a click and silence.

"Sorry about that. Niki is a brat."

I blink. I've never heard siblings fight like that before. Not even Asuka and Fubuki. "Um, it was fine. So what was the important conversation we were having?"

K.C. is silent. "Do you think it's okay if you come meet my dad with me?"

I actually drop the phone. K.C. just asked me to escort her to the most important event in her entire lifetime: meeting her father. She chose me. Why? I pick up the phone, noticing my hand shaking as I do. I hold it to my ear. "K-K.C.?"

"Good, you're alive."

I chuckle. "Um...yeah. K.C., why me? I mean, Jessah is probably a better choice. She's your best friend after all."

"And she also can't keep a secret. I mean, she knows I'm going to my father's and I can trust her with the information and stuff but I've said so many things to her about him. Mainly about him being a faggot jackass." K.C. is quiet. "Besides, I trust you Sho. I mean, we've only been friends for, what, three or four days?"

"Just about."

"But, we went to school together."

"We weren't in the same class."

"Doesn't matter." I hear a smile in her voice. "Sho, you thought you were the lay-low man at school, didn't you?"

"Yes."

"Well, you weren't. You may not have been popular, but you definitely made impressions. All the teachers sang of your praises, Pippa always told us that you were a sweet little soul--yes, she used those exact words--and when Yu...Judai, called Niki, he always said that you were generous and loyal and he even said that you were the best friend he ever had."

I blush. Judai said those things about me? I...I can't believe it! I mean, I can see him saying that, but saying that to me to boost my morale. And even then, I would be a jerk and think he was just saying those things. But he really meant it. He really, really meant it.

"I can tell you're a good person Sho. I trust you. Can I trust you to help me get through this?"

I nod, almost speechless. "Sho?" K.C. asks.

I shake my head, trying to knock the words back into me. "Y-Yes! Yes, you can trust me!"

I hear her smile again. "Thank you, Sho."

* * *

_is it sad that the "you're more British" fight is an actual fight me and my own boyfriend constantly have? yes, it is._

_what is Judai going to do the next day? and how will meeting K.C's father going to affect Sho? you won't figure out the second thing until the chapter after next, so don't you worry about that._


	16. the magnificent search begins

_Yo! Tis A.C. and she is updating her almost-done story! Huray for A.C.-chan!_

_Okay, I know for a fact now how many chapters I have left. There's next chapter, which will actually happen a few days before they all have to return to school, then the next one will be the same day, at the beginning but will flow into the day that they are returning. The one after that has a Ryo POV, because he seriously does need a say in this story. After that is the dramatic downward slope in the pyramid of story plots that Ms. Barraine has for us on the chalkboard and then the final chapter. _

_Yeah, I just totally bored you with that, didn't I? _

_Here's the story!_

**ac-the-brain-supreme does not own Yugioh GX. theres nothing much more to say about that subject. Oh! And before she forgets, again, she does not own the song used in this chapter. She has the movie it belongs to! And it is so cool! It has singing Nazi youths! **

* * *

I stand in front of the little shop-house that my aunt, uncle, and cousin live in. The plate glass windows have a fat little Buddha statue and a sort of but not really tacky neon "open" sign in them. I walk up to the door, opening it and letting the patrons and whoever else was in there know that a fifteen-year-old high school boy had just walked into a tattoo parlor.

The three morning patrons, a skinny biker man with a leather vest, a twenty-twoish blonde with double-D cups, and a slight Indian woman with a diamond stud in her right nostril and a red dot on her forehead, all look at me. I can tell what they are all probably getting from what I hear from my aunt and mother's conversations. The biker is probably getting one of the skulls with the Chinese dragon curling around it, its curvy horns a golden yellow and its scaly skin a bright emerald green. The blonde is getting either a sexy fairy--probably the most popular fire fairy that has its back turned and its long wavy red hair just stopping above her ample bottom--or an angel with big feathery wings and blonde hair that surrounds the being like a golden sea. I know that the Indian woman is getting henna, that's what my uncle's shop is famous for in this town. It actually gives discounts for woman who are getting henna for their marriage. It's apparently a good luck thing, like a rabbit's foot or a horseshoe.

"Judai-kun!" I turn to see Jasmine, my older cousin, waving at me with a big smile. The patrons loose their interest. I'm one of the family, so that makes me less interesting.

I walk up to the front desk. It looks like a bar and Jasmine even sits on a bar stool. She's a year older than me and already has two arms full of sleevelike henna. It was a present for her sixteenth birthday. "What's up Jazzy?"

Jasmine flips a hand. "Ah, same old same old. Dad is away at a tattoo convention and Mom is at an yoga class." Jasmine sighs. "Damn, things are boring here. I was waiting for you to come over and tell me about the boyfriend you got at school."

I blush. "Who told you?"

Jasmine just smiles. "Buddy boy, you know I'm the all-knowing amazing Jazzy-chan." Jasmine folds her arms behind her head, leans back on the wall, and puts her feet on the bar-desk. I smile. She winks at me. "So, what're you doing here? Being the good cousin that you are supposed to be and visiting your loovely and most favorite cuz?"

"You're my only cousin."

"Hey, you don't know that" Jasmine says.

I shake my head. "I want to ask you something."

"Shoot."

"You're really good at recognizing music, right?"

Jasmine sits normally on the stool. "Too true."

"If I hum a song, could you identify it?"

Jasmine nods. "I probably could."

I nod at her. That's when I start to hum her the few repetitive bars I know. My Adam's apple shakes and I close my eyes. I feel words at the base of my skull, trying to crawl out of the shallow hole with the steep walls that they have been placed in so long ago. I was only humming for maybe a minute, keeping the tone its soft and slow tempo. My eyes are just a little bit heavier when I open them back up and look at Jasmine. She's chewing on a bit of hair, trying to put a title and artist to my tune. "I've heard it before" Jasmine admits. "I just don't know where."

"Excuse me." Jasmine and I look at the blonde with the double-D's. "Sorry to interrupt, but I know that song."

"Really, what is it?"

The blonde smiles, something dreamy in her eyes. "That was _Edelweiss._ It's from the movie-slash-musical _The Sound of Music_." The blonde sighs. "That has to be the most beautiful song I have ever heard."

I smile. I walk up to the blonde and shake her hand. "Thank you so much, Ma'am. You don't know how much this means to me."

The woman nods. "No problem little boy!"

I turn and run out of the tattoo parlor, taking a sharp turn so that I can sprint to the closest record store.

**It's Just Not Fair**

I stare at the unwrapped CD that I had bought an hour before. No, it did not take me an hour to get home. It took five minutes and I spent fifty-five sitting on the couch staring at the damned plastic case. I sigh. I am such a wimp. My thumb runs over the front cover.

I don't get why, but ever since I've gotten home I've had the need to know about my father. More specifically, his relationship with my mother. I can sort of understand his initial reaction to me, frightened out of his mind and demanding that the problem go away, but what would make him come back to just leave again? Was he guilty? Was he afraid? Did he love my mom but was not ready for the hassle of a child?

And according to my mom, I was a quite a hassel.

A single song won't do much to teach me about my father, but it's something. Because now I know that he liked his song; that he sang it to me at night as I was falling asleep. I pop open the case and take out the CD. I place it in my old CD player and then tape the top back down.

I search for the song and then lean my head back, putting it on a constant loop. I want to remember each chord of the accoustic guitar and dream about the baritone voice that sings about the sweet flower that grows high in the mountains of the Austrian country side.

_Edelweiss, Edelweiss,_

_Every morning you greet me._

_Small and white, pure and bright,_

_You look happy to meet me._

I smile and close my eyes. No wonder this was sung to a little kid. It's comforting, slow, and calming.

_Blossom of snow, may you bloom and grow,_

_Bloom and grow for-ev-er._

I can almost feel a hand stroke my hair back. I lean into the hand that's not there. In my mind, I open my eyes. I'm in my bedroom which is dark and lit only by the open doorway where my mother is standing with her arms crossed over her stomach. She's smiling sweetly, enjoying the music and the scene before her.

_Edelweiss, Edelweiss_

_Bless my homeland forever._

My eyes focus on the man that is singing to me. His face is a blur, but he's smiling. He's smiling and looking at me with...I don't know the color of his eyes. But I can see them shining with the light of his own beaming smile. In the image I have painted in my mind, I fall asleep, the song still ringing in my head as it loops and begins again.

**It's Just Not Fair**

_Loose threads of Judai's hair float around his head, dangling in front of his eyes and tickling his cheeks. The brunette looks around. The green grass of the Alpine Mountains sway to the wind, submissive to the invisible force's gentle but domineering ways. Judai looks over his shoulder. The sky is icy blue and clear. Judai turns around fully, opening his arms to the natural sweet air and the white little flowers that bobbed arouns his feet, dancing a tango with the blades of grass that surround the flowers, turning them into snowy islands in an emerald sea too eager to keep them seperate._

_There is laughing from a different direction. Judai turns to it and finds his mother, sixteen and in her highschool uniform, spinning around in the arms of an older, featureless man. Judai smiles. He's never seen his mother so happy. Not when Judai had brought home his first "A" test; not when Judai was accepted into Duel Academy; not ever. _

_The two stop spinning and stare into each other's eyes for a moment. The man leans down and lays a simple kiss on Autumn's sensitive lips. Autumn smiles and blushes. She leans into the man and sighs. That's when she sees her soon-to-be son. Autumn waves her hand. "Come over, Judai. There's plenty of room for you!"_

_Judai nods and runs over. The man and his mother open their circle for Judai to join. Judai reaches them, now ten years younger than he was a second ago. The group of three spin again, laughing and smiling and just enjoying the others' company._

**It's Not Fair**

My eyes flutter open. The living room is dark and there is a blanket covering me. My CD player has been turned off and placed neatly on the side table with the headphones wrapped and sitting on top. I sit up, eyes closing shut as I exhaustedly get into a sitting position. I look to the clock on the wall to determine the time, but it is too dark to really tell. Not really caring and really freaking tired, I lie back down and curl up, pulling the covers closer to me and falling back asleep.

**It's Not Fair**

Spring vacation is almost over. One week left and then I'm sent back to Duel Academy. So that means I have to pick up the pace with the maginificent search for my father. At least, that's what Jasmine calls it. She's picked up on the mission but she does almost nothing. She doesn't know anything about my father and she refuses to ask auntie or grandpa about him either.

I doubt they know much about my father anyway, but it's better to ask and be dissapointed then to not ask and miss out on good information.

But auntie doesn't like me just showing up and grandpa lives to far away to ask him. So I'm stuck lying on my bed, wondering what I should do.

I chew on my fingernail, my mind wandering as far from the intended topic as humanly possible. I'm remembering a family tree project I had to do in the fifth grade. The poster board was forest green and the computer paper was falling off it since the Elmer's Glue used was too old and dried out to paste anything anymore. I got a B, so it wasn't a total flop, but Kami, it was a piece of crap.

I sit up. That's it: I can research myself. I can go to the library and I can look up my birth certificate. Certainly my mother has to have my father's name on there. She knew who he was anyway. And I still have my library card and it's active, so I could definitely get to use the computers there. I jump off the bed, grabbing my walet and running out of my room.

In the living room, my mother is sitting on the couch, reading the folder that Mrs. Marafuji had given her a while back. I stop and look at her. She's so engrossed in it that she doesn't even notice me nearly running out of the room. I walk over. The folder was made think by the many, many leaves of paper that filled it, and my mother is about halfway through it. I look at the text, then up at my mother. I shake my head.

"Mom, I'm going to the library" I announce. She grunts. I blink. "And afterwards, I'm going to go to Ryo's for some hot and wild unprotected sex." She grunts again. "And then I'm going to go to an orgie where there is going to be syphillis-infected homeless men with mental problems and freshly sharpened steak knives."

"Bring condoms" my mother mutters, the only words she has said to me all day

**It's Just Not Fair**

I take a deep breath of air. My eyes are closed shut and not flinching as I wait for the courage to come to me so I can look at the computer screen. I found my birth certificate through about an hour to an hour and a half of seraching and asking for help from the librarian. But it was more than worth it.

I take another deep breath and squeak open one eye. I open the other and scan the computerized legal paper that is being displayed on the screen. Most of it, being handwritten, was messed up when the paper was scanned onto the computer. But the important things are still somewhat legible. My name, how much I weighed, the date, my mother's name, all that are still readable. The most important thing, the one thing I really came here for, is still legible as well.

The screen goes black. My ninety minutes of computer use is over. But it doesn't matter. I pick up my things and push the chair in. My job here is done, because I finally have the one thing that I need to find the person who sang me to sleep when I was smaller.

I stand at the sidewalk, the cars flying by in front of me like lightning. I give a quick glance to the left and then to the right. I cross my arms over my chest and join the current of sulky grownups that have cell phones to their ears or Blackberries in their hands, the stylus opening files that tell them what to do for the day. I pass some kids my age, but only because the shopping district isn't far away.

I start to run so I can catch the bus that just got at the stop. I climb on just in time: the door shut a minute after I took a seat. I stare out at the side walk. As the bus drives away, I see a father and son walking hand-in-hand. The bus rolls into motion as a smile floats to my face.

I wonder if me and my dad did that.

**It's Just Not Fair**

My mom is still reading that thing she was reading when I left. I walked over when first entered the room and looked over her shoulder. "Having fun?" I ask.

My mom nods. "Good...story."

I stand there for a moment, just staring at the text. I plop down next to my mother and stare at the page she's looking at. "Where are you?"

My mom points to a line about midway through the page next to the one I was looking at. I look over the sentence That she was pointing at. I guess maybe it's smarter to read from the beginning because the sentence I'm reading is a peice of dialouge that I don't quite understand.

_"Ain't quite kind ah you," the bounty hunter said as he clipped the blade of the boomerang so that the weapon transformed into a sword, "tah be a'sayin' that about mah fam'ly."_

_The girl flipped her raven hair back over her shoulder. "I can say whatever I want, thank you very much."_

_A cold steel was felt against young Araleen's pale throat. She looked up, blue eyes darkening on the albino's pinkish ones. "You don't got any right, ya little brat."_

I lean away. "What the hell is this about?"

"I'll tell you when I'm done."

I sigh and lean back. I look up at the ceiling, then at the floor. I stand up and walk to my room. Well, it was just some stupid story that my mother was spending all her time with. There are more important things I have to deal with first.

"Oh, Ryo called while you were out."

Things like that.

**It's Just Not Fair**

I lay on my stomach, staring at the morning cartoons. My mom is hurrying about, picking up things for work and the folder that has the story she had finished the day before. "Okay, Judai" my mom says, standing in front of me. I look up at her. "I'm going to work. I'll be a little late since I'm meeting Ms. Markovitch for dinner. I hope you can make something up yourself?"

"I am the gourmet of the house" I say, repeating what Mom always brags about me.

Mom pats me on the head. "True. I'm off now! Have fun, Judai and don't throw any wild raves while I'm out." Mom dances out the door and shuts it. I sigh and push my bangs backwards. The telephone rings and I can only imagine it's my mother calling me because she left her ID up here. I sit up and reach over for the telephone. "Hello?"

"Hello there sweet thing."

I freeze and sit straight up. "Uh, um, R-Ryo! Hi! Hi. Uh...wh-what are you doing?"

Smooth laughter frazzles the telephone line. My eyelids droop. I don't know why, but even after I've fallen out of love with Ryo, he still has that hypnotizing effect on me. "I'm finding ways to avoid going home."

"You haven't gone home yet?" I ask. It's been a while since the last time I saw him. Eight days actually. Probably the longest I have gone without seeing him. "Why? Did they kick you out?"

Ryo hums before answering me. "I have gone home. Some nights I sneak into my room to sleep there, but I'm out by eight when my house starts waking up."

"So what do you do until then. I mean, where do you go?"

"Nowhere really. Some old friends from junior high. I visited Manjyome, if you can believe it."

"You did?" I ask. "You know where he lives?"

"It's like a palace" Ryo says. "I'm surprised I made it out."

"Does his brothers live with him?" I ask, my eyes narrowing.

"The younger one does, but he's at work mostly so I didn't see him when I was there." Ryo pauses. "Why are you so interested anyway? You aren't playing with the idea of cheating on me, are you?"

I freeze. "N-N-No! No! Not at all! No!"

Ryo laughs. "I'm joking, Judai."

I sigh. Good. I-I mean bad. Very, very bad! I want to break up with him but I can't if he thinks that our relationship is picture perfect. "So, what else is up with our friends?"

"You haven't talked to them?" Ryo asks.

"No. Haven't really gotten the time." Or really the motivation.

"Well, I haven't either really." He pauses. "You haven't talked to Sho, have you?"

I feel a chill move down my spine. The darkness and almost hatred in that last question was almost frightening. "No."

"Good, because I don't want you talking to him, Judai."

I look sullenly at my feet, bent under me on the couch. What right does he have to tell me who and who I can't talk to? And he's telling me not to talk to Sho. He's my best friend. He's more than my best friend, actually. He's the one I really want. He's the one I think I really care about me. But Ryo is frightening when he gets like that. So I choose the cowardly and safe way out. "Oh...Okay Ryo" I concede.

* * *

_I'm hungry. I want dinner. _

_Review and later!_


	17. daddy dearest

_Yay! It's a new, exciting chapter! One fraught with peril and...well...there's not really much peril. It's just a really good chapter. _

_And it took SO LONG to write! It was starting to feel like the "never ending story". And I was going to update this last night, if my mom hadn't forced me to bed. Hmph..._

_Anyway, here's the new chapter. _

**ac-the-brain-supreme. she has red hair. she has a brain. but she does not have the copywrites to Yugioh GX.**

* * *

Stacks of photo albums surround me as I flip through the yellow-paged books that hold pictures from a decade ago. Some of them even further. I toss the one I was holding to the side and look back into the cabinet. Mom won't like the mess that I'm making, but I'll clean it up. I will...once I'm done.

I look at the clock. Damn, the day is moving by so slowly. If I run out of things to do, then I'll have to do something boring. Like pack for Duel Academy. Actually, that was what I was supposed to be doing today. Vacation ends today, pretty much. Tomorrow, I will have to go to the pier with my mother and get on the boat that will take me to the one place I can't avoid both Ryo and Sho.

I groan at the thought, then turn to the cabinet. There are three more albums I haven't looked through yet. The one on the very bottom is pink and thinner then the rest. Probably something from when she was in high school. Curiosity and procrastination pushing me forward, I ease the pink album from under the pile. I sit with folded legs and look at the cover. There on the front is, in white font and curly script, the letters "A" and "K".

My heart begins to pound. I had never started looking through the albums with the mindset of searching for more information on my father, but I think that was the best way of looking for him. I open the album and see that it is more of a scrapbook. On the very first page is a picture of my mother and an older man, who I know for a fact is not my grandfather or related to my mother in that sort of sense.

I had always been told that I look like my mother and the pictures in this scrapbook only verifies the claims. My father, in the pictures, has long black hair and crystal blue eyes. His skin is pale and creamy and he is a pretty tall person. His arm is hooked around my mother's waist in many pictures or they are kissing or doing something that gives me the sense of happiness and love. I open to the last page and feel my heart jump into my throat. It's not much, the page doesn't have anything else on the page unlike the other ones. The other pages had ticket stubs or the date or a flower or something to remember the day better. But this one is just a picture.

A picture of my black-haired, blue-eyed father with me, a five-year-old kid with a backwards baseball cap and a handfull of cards, most likely Duel Monsters cards.

I hear the front door open. I look up at the clock, which reads just three o'clock. What is my mom doing home so early? Her shift doesn't end until five normally, seven or eight on really bad days. "Judai," she calls. With little thought, I pull out the picture of me and my father and stuff it in the waistband of my pants. My mom won't want that after it's been in my pants.

"Judai, where are you?" More footsteps, but they are becoming softer. She's checking my room to see if I'm in there, being the responsible boy that I was supposed to be today. I start putting things back, first starting with the pink album. It goes back on the bottom. The rest are just put in, willy-nilly. My mom won't notice anything. Will she?

"Judai, where are you?" I'm practically throwing books into the shelves by now. My mother's footsteps become louder and louder, the sound amplified by my fear. Eventually, Mom opens the door. I look at her, much like a child would look like if he had gotten caught stealing the last cookie from the cookie jar. Though I fear my mother will start yelling at me, she just smiles and shakes her head. "This is why I came home early." She bends over and picks up one of the albums I have yet to put back. "You are just like your grandfather when it comes to doing things important. 'It's always better off when I do it at the last minute' he always said." Mom laughs. I laugh with her, but mine is weak and readable. Mom doesn't notice. She just tosses the album onto her bed and waves for me to follow her, which I do with much relief.

**Sho's POV**

I study each outfit I have laid out and my mother has approved. Today is the day I'm escourting K.C. to meet her father and I'm very anxious. K.C. hasn't really told me much about her father, other than he is pretty rich. With that in mind, I want to look as presentable as I possibly can.

And now I'm at a fashionable roadblock.

I throw my hands in the air. "Argh!" I cry. In front of me, I have one tuxedo, a green sweater vest and red tie with black slacks and a white Oxford shirt, and a red knit sweater with the same black pants as the second outfit. The tuxedo is undoubtedly too fancy. But the other two are just as nice and I don't know what to wear because I don't know how fancy this will be and I don't want to call K.C. because she might think I'm overreacting and...and...ach!

"Need help?" I turn around. Standing in the doorway is...

"Uncle Jeremiah?" I say. "Wh-What are you doing? And speaking Japanese too?"

My uncle shrugs and walks over to my side. "It's only respectable that I speak the same language that naturally comes to you." He shrugs. "And I was a little worried that I might loose the accent I had worked so hard on for so long."

I laugh. He winks at me. Uncle Jeremiah walks over and looks at the three outfits. He hums than points at the red sweater. "That looks good enough." Uncle Jeremiah then walked away, leaving me staring at the outfit he had chosen for me. I blink, then look at him. "Thank you" I call out. Uncle Jeremiah looks back at me. He smiles, gives a thumbs-up, and then leaves.

**Judai's POV**

I'm lying on my back, chilling while my mom is out of the room. I've got half the suitcase filled when she left, then got a just a little further before falling on my back. I deserve the rest, I think.

The door slams open and my mother is holding the pink scrapbook-album. Crap.

She holds out her hand. "Give me the picture Judai!"

I sit up, using my arms as support colomns for the rest of my body. "What picture?"

My mother throws the album at my bed. The book nearly breaks as it hits the head board. My eyes widen. My mom often yells at me, but she's never yelled like this before. She's never thrown anything, let alone nearly break something. I stare at the book and begin fearing my life. My mom stomps on the ground. "Give me the picture!"

I stand up. "No way!" I say. It's no use trying to play stupid or innocent. That'd just get me killed.

"Hand it over now Judai!"

"Why? You have other pictures in there!" I point at the pink scrapbook. "And who knows how many more pictures you have of me and my father together."

My mother freezes. There are more pictures? Where, I didn't see them? Maybe in one of those other albums, the ones I skipped over? Ah, damn. I could have just looked through them and had avoided this entire confrontation! Well, since my mom is here I guess I have to tell her what I feel.

"It's not fair!" I say.

"What's not fair?"

"That you're keeping me away from my dad" I answer.

"I'm not keeping you away from your father!"

"Then where does he live? How come I've only met him when I was, like, five?" My mom is silent and looks at the ground. I smirk. "See? You can't answer my questions! I mean, I won't be angry if you told me that you don't know where he is, but you do. That's why you've never told me a thing about him."

My mom shakes her head. "I haven't told you a thing about him because I don't want you to be dissapointed."

"Well dissapointment is better than angry!"

Mom stamps her foot. "Stop acting like this!"

"Acting like what?"

"Like a spoiled brat."

"I am not!"

"Yes you are!"

"Well...well you are the one coming in here demanding the picture from me."

"That's because it's mine."

I try to retort, but it's starting to get hard to. My mother sighs. She tries one last time to reason with me. "Judai, I know it isn't exactly fair to you, but it is for the best."

"Whose best?"

"The both of us." Mom places the hand over her heart. "Judai, your father really tried to be here and watch you grow up but some things just can't be helped."

"Things like what?"

My mom turns away. She crosses her arms over her chest and sighs. I cross my arms as well and stare at her. We stay there for a few minutes, our stamina and stubborness keeping us strong for as long as they'll wear. Thankfully, I'm young and energetic and my mom is older and has had the wear of fifteen years of a son on her. Still, she holds out for an amazingly long time.

My mother turns away from me and walks out of the room. "I expect you to meet me in the car in about ten minutes. If you don't meet me down there, I'll leave you behind." Then she shuts the door and leaves me alone.

**Sho's POV**

The car horn beeps for the fifth time and K.C. has finally stopped shaking me. I look up at her. "K.C., what the hell?"

K.C. laughs as she takes me by the hand and walks me down the front path. I look back at the door to my house and see my mom wave at me. She doesn't at all seem fased by the stretch limosine that is parked right outside our gate. I wave back at her and smile, even though I do not at all feel comfortable.

Me and K.C. step inside the car and take a seat next to each other on the patent Italian leather seats. There is a well taken care of black carpet and a mini refirgerator. Speaker grills surround us on the doors and the walls, giving the term "surround sound" a new meaning. The chauffer is wearing the classic uniform with the three-cornered black hat with the shiny visor, a good suit, and a paid smile. "Good afternoon Miss Kaleigh-Christian" he greets. "Good afternoon Mister Sho."

"Good afternoon" I say as politely and as confidently as I can. K.C. nods at the man and hums. The car starts moving and everything is rolling by us.

The man nods to the mirror. "Is there anything I can get you two?"

K.C. looks at the mini refrigerator. "What's in the fridge?"

"Grape, orange and strawberry sodas, some chocolate candies and milks, cookies and other treats." The chauffer smiles. "Have as much as you like."

K.C. nods. She looks at the speakers. "Do you get 105.8?" The chauffer nods. K.C. smiles and claps. "Great. Can you please turn that on and then give us some privacy?"

The chauffer winks. "Sure thing Ma'am." Once some rock music is flowing from the speakers, we each have a soda in our hands, and the seperating window is up, then K.C. begins to speak.

I want to get one thing certain: like I said before, K.C. has only said that her father is rich. That was really all she wanted to tell me or had the heart to tell me at the time. She had promised that she'd tell me the entire story once we were in the car and driving to his house. I look at her expectantly. She glances at me, sighs, then returns to looking at her soda.

"My mom worked for my father" she starts. "At the time, she was dating a musician. They were head over heels with each other." K.C. takes a swig of her soda. "I'm sure my mom never told me the entire story, but that doesn't mean much. All that does matter is that she was faced with an ultimatum: 'Sleep with me or loose your job.'"

"So she slept with him?"

K.C. shrugs. "Yeah. She almost had to. She and her boyfriend were saving up for a real house. She needed money." She dips her head back. "And guess who came from that." I play with my bottle. "My mom's boyfriend wasn't really suspicious about a new baby. In fact, it just gave him a reason to ask my mom to marry him." K.C. tugs on her hair. "It wasn't until after I was born that he started getting suspicious."

"You didn't look like him?"

"Nothing other than the brown hair." K.C. sits up straight. "My mom says that she had said that I looked like my grandmother on her side."

"Which you didn't?"

"Not in the least."

I smile.

"Well, things were happy and good for a while, but not long before my mother and her boyfriend were going to get married, that nasty ultimatum came up again. Job or sex. This time, my mom put up more of a fight, but she ended up giving in." K.C. sighs. "Niki doesn't know it, which is how me and my mother like it, but my mom and her boyfriend hadn't done anything since I was born."

"So your mother's boyfriend knew she was being forced?"

"And he didn't believe the stories so he left. That or he just didn't face her about it." K.C. tapped the window. "And so, to make things short, my mother quit, sued, and proved that I was her boss's child."

I bend forward, crossing my arms in front of my stomach. "That's so sad."

K.C. nods. "Yeah. The good thing is that he pays for both me and Niki. I mean, he sends three seperate checks over monthly for us. One for the two illegitemate children, one for the woman who couldn't fight off long enough to keep to her 'no'."

I make the soda swirl in my bottle. There has to be something I could say. It seems appropriate. I think. I look up at K.C. She's staring at the carpet. I look away. Even if the time was appropriate, what could I say? What the hell can I say that'll make her feel better or that I know what it's like? I can't, though. I never can. Because my mother was with the man that she loved and didn't even rush into marriage after finding out she was pregnant. She lived a happy life.

I guess I should be lucky for that.

Somehow, the trip has flown by. We are now rolling up to a large, white and expensive looking house with its very own security service. My eyes widen. People are this rich? Damn. K.C. reaches over and grasps my knee. "This is it" she says. "My father's house."

The car stops rolling and the chauffer climbs out. K.C.'s grip strenghtens. It's not painful, but it is starting to bug me. Not her holding onto my knee. Rather, that she's this nervous. What a good poker face. The chauffer opens the door. "Welcome," he says, "to Kaiba Manor."

**Judai's POV**

I haven't looked out of the window ever since I got in the car. I want to be surprised. Does my father live in a big house? Is he rich? Does he have another family? Maybe he's an NPA agent? That would be so cool! Part of the National Police Association. I doubt that many kids can claim that! Maybe...maybe he had to leave my mom and me for our own good. Yeah! We were being threatened and he had to leave to make sure me and my mom weren't hurt!

I can just imagine that conversation now.

_It is not possible for me to keep living with you, my love_, my father would have said.

_But...but we need you here! Judai needs a father to look up to_, my mother says, tears in her eyes.

_It can not be so! The evil Cantonese will not leave me alone. Just today I got three e-mails telling me to die or watch my family do just that_, he responds. He holds his arm to his forehead, a cheesy dramatic pose that fits so well in this scene.

_Oh, dear, as long as you are here, we will be safe!_

_I can not take that chance, my beauty. _Here enters a long and romantic kiss._ I swear, I will return to you and our son. I swear, my beautiful Autumn!_

"What are you laughing at?"

I look up at my mother. "The Cantonese's foolish attempts to break up our family!"

My mother blinks. "I'm afraid to ask." I smile and laugh nervously. She wouldn't get it either. "And isn't Cantonese a Chinese dialect?"

"I don't know!"

My mother smiles and shakes her head. She sighs, then looks ahead of her. "Well, we're here. Do you want to get out?"

I cross my arms. "After you."

My mother sighs. I'm making this hard for her, but she's had a lot of years of keeping things from me. I feel it is only fair that I torture her for a little while. I watch as my mother gets out of the car. My eyes keep steady on her as she walks around the front of the car. When she gets to the side walk, I begin to feel some anxiety. It's when she walks through a rod iron gate that my heart drops and I scramble out of the car.

He can't be here. Maybe he just takes care of this land. Yeah, some sick job that was inherited from his parents or grandparents or something. It'd be impossible for him to live here! I catch up with my mom. I tug on her shirt. "Mom, this isn't the right place, is it?" My mother nods. I'm silent. "Well," I try again, "does he live in the woods just over there?" My mom shakes her head.

I freeze. "But...but if he's here then...then that means...that means..."

"That he's dead" my mother finishes. She finally turns to me, crying. My mother nods. "Yeah, Judai, your father is dead. He got in a car accident and he...he passed in the hospital." She wipes a tear from her cheek. "You were there. You were five."

I was there? But how? I don't remember...

Then it comes to me.

_Lots of white, my mother sitting by a bed, calling to me. Then I'm sitting on her lap, looking into a once-blank face that is now a man with blue eyes and black hair. "Hey, kid", he says. "I'm going to be gone for a little while, okay?" I nod, too naive to know that this was my father dying before me. "When're you gonna be back?" _

_He looks away, but only briefly. "I'm not really sure, kid." He reaches out and holds my hand. "Probably not for a really, really long time."_

_"Can I come then?" I turn to my mother. "Can I go, Momma? Can I, can I?"_

_A short look of horror passes through my mother's face, but she's smiling again, so it's okay. Because everything is okay when Momma smiles. "No, Baby Boy. You have school tomorrow."_

_I whine, which makes everyone laugh. My father squeezes my hand, so I return my attention to him. "Y'know," I say, "you were s'posed to play Duel Monsters with me tomorrow. And since you're not gonna be here, I can't play with you."_

_My father smiles. "Well..." his voice is getting softer and more forced, "then when I come back or when you come to where I'll be going, we'll play."_

_"Promise?"_

_"I promise." Then he lets my hand go, says some whispered words to my mother, closes his eyes, and a loud, long note accompanied by my mother's crying fills the room._

I look around. For someplace that is so green with fresh grass, things seem dreary. It's most likely thanks to the cold gray headstones with the names of the deceased chisled into them. Though, I have a feeling that the dreariness, the sudden cold and sad is not from the look of the place. I keep looking around. Maybe I can find him in this sea.

I start up the path, past my mother. My eyes scan each headstone, looking for one name in particular. I don't look back to look for my mother. If I do, then I might miss him. I don't want that to happen.

Finally, I see the name. I run to the headstone, a black marble that looks well polished and nicely taken care of. I kneel in front of it and run my fingers over the name. I feel a lump rise in my throat and, for the first time in a while, I begin to cry. My mother comes up behind me and gives me a hug. She places a kiss on the top of my head and begins to cry with me.

**Sho's POV**

The Kaiba mansion flaunts the incredible wealth its owners have amassed in the years the company has been a force in whatever field it has delved into. In fact, I get lost twice when I went to and came back from the bathroom.

By the way, the sink is gold-plated. It's kinda cool.

Anyway, I finally found a maid that directed me back to the front steps where I could find the drawing room where K.C. and Mr. Kaiba had met for the first time. The staircase isn't completely marble, but parts of it are the smooth, cold gray-white stone. The floor to the entrance hall is completely marble, though. There are abstract paintings in giant ornate frames and cherry oak polished furniture and even a mirror. Probably for parties. There are doors that lead to who knows where and I actually saw Mr. Kaiba's little brother. He was in an office with an open door, his feet on the desk and a cigarette in one hand. Someone I didn't see plucked it out and put it out on the ashtray. She, because she talked and I could tell it was a female voice, reprimanded Mokuba, saying that it was really bad for his health to smoke and that Kaiba wouldn't like to walk upstairs and smell smoke.

Like the last time.

I had moved on right after the comment was made, not being noticed at all.

"Why can't you at least give me the pleasure of knowing why?" My excitement and most of the color in my face drains.

"Why what?"

"Why did you ruin my mother's life?"

"I didn't ruin her life."

"How can you say that? She would have been happy and married if you hadn't gone around bullying a good time out of her!"

"Kaleigh-Christian, wait."

"No! I won't wait! In fact, I'm leaving!"

K.C. storms out of the drawing room, arms swinging like two wild pendulums. I look into the room that still had Mr. Kaiba in it. He was sitting in one of the leather chairs, long legs stretched out and a hand covering his mouth. I turn away and run after K.C., who has sprinted herself out of the mansion.

Unfortunately, K.C. is too much like her father. Physically, I mean. Her legs are much longer than mine are and even though my legs probably make up sixty percent of my length, they are still no match for K.C. and her amazing speed. When I finally catch up with her, she's sitting on a bus bench, breathing heavily. I can barely talk and am falling over myself to get onto the bench. As soon as I sit next to her, she starts complaining.

"That bastard! That horrible, cold-hearted, unfeeling bastard! How can he deny his own daughter the one question she really cares about? How can he ruin my mother's life like that? How can he be such a bastard?" She punches the back of the bench.

I look at her. This is the first time I've ever really seen K.C. be so emotional. Sure, I've seen her when she's laughed, but even then it was with some air of importance and a feeling of aristocracy. A true but not really true laugh, if that makes any sense. But now, with her sobbing like a little baby next to me, cursing her father and his refusal to answer her questions and why the sky is blue, she seems more human. Maybe that snide but warming smile she always wears, the knowing and freezing gaze, the proud stance and the leisurely gait are all cover-ups? Masks to show an interesting and mysterious girl rather than the broken one that only wants to know what the hell is going on or what the hell had been going on.

I look at the sidewalk. Instinct says to comfort her, but how? I've never consoled anyone before. I'm the one that always needs to be held close, whispered softly, told things are okay. I can't tell her that now, though. Because she'll know that I'm just BSing it and that, even though I'm trying to be sincere, I'm really going as far from that point as possible.

Was this the kind of thing that she wanted to bring me along for? She thought I was able to comfort her if things went so horribly wrong like this? Maybe so. Actually, now that I really think about it, that was probably what she was thinking of from the moment she first heard about the meeting. I clench my fist. I can't let her down.

"Maybe he doesn't believe he ruined your mother's life?" A total shot in the dark. And from K.C.'s glare, I'm about to get punched. "What?" she hisses.

I gulp. Please let this work for me. "W-Well...what you said was true. If he hadn't forced himself on your mother, she would be married and happy." I twiddle my thumbs. "But she wouldn't have you or your brother."

K.C. is silent. I take a chance and continue my point. "And...and maybe he didn't want to tell you because you would have told your mom."

"So he might not want my mother to know why she ruined her life?"

I look up. "What if he didn't ruin her life. I mean, isn't she happy in the life that she's in? Aren't you happy?" K.C. opens her mouth, but I'm not done. "And he's a guy for God's sake! Guys are all heartless at some point in their life, but only when they're trying to protect themselves or someone that they really care about."

I point down the road where we just came from. "And that was Seto Kaiba! He's a big businessman! And not only that, but he's one of the five best duelists to have ever picked up a card. He's probably used to having a poker face and protecting himself and all that kind of stuff!"

I place a hand on my heart. "Duelists, or at least most of them, tend to be loners. They put their hearts into their duels and their cards so they can win and be the best. That leaves no time for socializing and having a girlfriend or a boyfriend or whatever you might like."

"Where are you going with this?" K.C. asks.

I raise a finger. "I'm getting to the point." I take a deep breath. My eyes focus on a puddle on the edge of the street. "What if...what if he really and truly loved your mother? What if he loved her but couldn't have her because of the boyfriend or her being his employee?" I look up at K.C. "Like I said, duelists normally socialize themselves with other duelists, normally to the point that they become outcasts. The real zealots even ostracize themselves from other duelists. So, instead of wooing her into his arms, he took an easier way out."

K.C. looks away. We're silent for a long time. Too long, really. And that makes things awkward. Should I say something? Maybe, but what should I say? I've voiced all that I needed. So that means she should be the first one to talk. But what if she's not ready to talk? Then if she's not ready to talk and one of us is supposed to talk then I should be the one to talk first. But since I'm not ready to talk and she's not readyu to talk then neither of us should talk and so this silence is good and now I'm rambling and I should shut up now.

The bus stops in front of us. K.C. stands up. "I don't like the idea of what you said," she told me without looking at me, "but I can understand it." Finally, she looks to me, pushing some brown hair behind her ears. "So, you want to hang out at my house for a little while?"

I smile. I guess she isn't mad at me.

**Judai's POV**

I swirl the soup concoction that I'm making for lunch. Mom is out and won't be back for a few hours. That's why the knocking on the door shocks me so much that I almost knock over the soup pot. I steady it and myself before putting down the wooden spoon and taking off the apron I have put on. The person beyond the door knocks again. I'm coming, I'm coming. Geez, can't they slow their horses?

I open the door. "Yes?" The door is jerked from my hand and a tall and handsome figure is just a little bent over me, looking into my brown eyes. "R-Ryo!"

Ryo scoops me briefly into his arms and gives me a long, passionate kiss. When I feel his arm slacken, I pull away. I'm panting and Ryo still has his icy composure. He walks into the living room and looks around, a slight smile on his face. I close the door and walk up next to him. "Uh, Ryo, what're you doing here so...eh...unexpectedly?"

"Like I said to you on the phone, I'm not going home so I'm just wandering around." Ryo walks into the kitchen and looks at the golden liquid simmering over a lazy flame. He smiles. He sniffs the air around it as I walk up. "This smells pretty good" he says.

"Thanks. This was my lunch for today and my mom's dinner for about two."

Ryo laughs. He turns to me and smiles. Oh shit. I've seen that look before. Before I realize it, my back is flat against a wall and Ryo is pressing as much of himself against me. I make noises that are supposed to show that I don't like this, but he's not getting it. I try to push him away, but Ryo just uses his strength against me. When Ryo pulls his lips away from mine, I get a few breaths in before I try to talk some sense into him.

"St-Stop...unh! Stop, please!"

To my surprise and joy, Ryo backs off. He's still holding onto my wrists, but otherwise has left the very personal part of the personal bubble. He's smiling, though. Smiling in the creepy and horny way he sometimes smiles at me. Oh shit.

Ryo leans in close and whispers in my ear. "You're right. This isn't the place to do it. Maybe if you show me where your room is, we could..."

"No!" I shout. "No!" I shake my head and pull my wrists. "No, no, no, no, no!" Ryo lets go, so I make my way out from between his body and the wall. "I don't want to do that with you anymore, Ryo! In fact, I don't think I ever wanted it!"

I feel Ryo's hand on my shoulder. He spins me around and I'm faced with his burning eyes. "What the hell is with that? You sure didn't make any protests when we were having sex on Academy Island." I gulp. He's right, I didn't. Ryo senses what I'm thinking and keeps talking. "In fact, I have a right to do this. My brother could have done anything to you that night."

"What does this have to do about Sho?" I shout. Maybe too loudly.

"He was trying to seduce you" Ryo reminded me.

I pull away from him. "No, you idiot! I was the one trying to seduce Sho!"

Ryo stands there, staring at me. His eyes are so wide that I'm starting to fear that they're going to pop out of his head. But they don't. In fact, Ryo doesn't really do anything. Except from turning around and walking out of the apartment. And even though I have finally taken a stand to him, possibly even ended the relationship from hell, I'm still unable to stay on my feet and hold in the tears that are forcing their way out.

**Sho's POV**

K.C. and I walk into her house, laughing and enjoying the ice creams we stopped to get on our way to her house. As we pass by her living room, I do a double-take. K.C. stops and looks back into the room as well. "Mom?" she says.

Ms. Markovitch and my mother are sitting on the couch, drinking coffee with a binder between them. My mother waves at me. "Sho! I thought you were going to be out with K.C. all day."

"How was your trip?" Ms. Markovitch asks.

"Sucky" K.C. answers. "What's going on here?"

Ms. Markovitch makes room on the couch and pats it. "I think you two might want to sit down for this."

* * *

_Psst...guys...guess what?_

_Three more chapters._


	18. so long, spring vacation

_shivers I'm so happy! Why, you might ask? Well, several reasons. _

_REASON 1--finals are O-VER!!!!_

_REASON 2--I'm a sophmore!_

_REASON 3--I'm going to the Outer Banks in 1 week._

_REASON 4--I'm going to the Filipino Festival this weekend._

_REASON 5--I'm SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO CLOSE to finishing this story._

_REASON 6--This story has officially become my fifth most popular fanfiction on the site._

_REASON 7--I found Mika!_

_For those who don't know what Mika is, he's a singer. And a damn fine singer too. _

_Well, here is the next chapter, up due to much inspiration and much more time and little chapter content! And lots of Maroon 5 and Mika! MIKA!!!!!!!_

**ac-the-brain-supreme. She doesn't own Yugioh GX.**

* * *

Nervously and with some reservations, I walk over and sit next to my mother on the couch. She holds onto my shoulders and rubs them. That means she's nervous. Very, very nervous. I gulp. If my mother, the unbreakable wall of confidence in my family, was nervous, then what should I be feeling?

Ms. Markovitch picks up the binder and opens it. She pulls out a manila folder and places it on top of the closed binder. She looks at me, hands placed on top of each other and a smile being restrained, lest it break her face in half. But even that doesn't stop Ms. Markovitch look as composed and as calm as I have ever seen her.

"Sho" she says to me, "I have just spoken to your mother." I can tell that. "And we have come to an undoubtedly life-changing decision." My mother's arms wrap all the way around me. Ms. Markovitch places her hands on mine. Why does everyone want to touch me? Even K.C. seems a little weirded out by this.

"Sho," Ms. Markovitch starts, not even trying to hide the excitment in her voice, "I would like to publish the story you wrote."

I pull my hands away. "What?" I shout. "What? Huh? Wh-Who gave you...what?"

Ms. Markovitch laughs. "Well, your mother gave it to Ms. Yuki," I shoot my mother a look, "and then she gave it to me at a dinner a few nights ago. I read through it, as did my partner and the heads at the publishers. We all decided that we would like to give your book a chance."

I shake my head. "But...I'm only a kid."

Ms. Markovitch nods. "Yeah. That's what made us really excited." Ms. Markovitch picks up the binder. That must be where my story is kept. "Sho, you have so much potential. This story is something we can't pass up on.

"But," she continues, "since you are such a novice writer, there are some things in the story that we need to work with you on. Minor details to the story, some grammar issues, basic things that every writer has to deal with at least once in their career."

"I sort of don't like the way this is going" I say.

"You might not" my mother says.

Ms. Markovitch takes a deep breath. "It would be nearly impossible for us to work on the story from such a distance, since you're going back to school tomorrow." Ms. Markovitch looks away. "That is why I had to talk to you, not only about the contract but what the fine print is going to say."

"What is it going to say?"

Ms. Markovitch looks straight into my eyes. "You're probably going to have to drop out of school for the remainder of the school year."

Well, I bet my mom was happy when she heard that, considering she never wanted me to go. Dropping out of Duel Academy? That's horrible. It would be a waste of time to have even gone there. All that I learned, all the friends that I made.

But, somehow, when I'm supposed to be unhappy and outraged, I feel nothing. Like dropping out would have been a decision equivalent to choosing your breakfast cereal for that morning. In fact, it's a little worse than that. It's almost like I don't feel a thing.

"Sho?" I turn to my mother. "What would you like to do?"

I look away. What would happen if I go to Duel Academy? Well, it would be impossible for me to avoid Judai, I'd still be ostracized by my friends there, I might loose the friends I've made here, and I'd pass up on probably the most important once-in-a-lifetime event. Then again, I have a passion for Duel Monsters and that school is probably one of the best places for me to learn how to play it.

I look at the manila folder. I take it and hold it in my hands. There is definitely something in there. I close my eyes. "I really, really need to think about this."

Ms. Markovitch nods. "Good choice" she says.

**Judai's POV**

The dock is full of kids saying good-bye to their parents and friends as I walk up. My mother leaves to check me and my luggage in, so I'm stuck sitting and chilling on one of the pillars that holds up this rickety old wooden planks that make the pier. A few people call over to me, and to be polite I wave back at them, but otherwise I just ignore the world.

Every once in a while, I see one of my friends. I saw Asuka and what I assume to be a mother or a sister or something looking at some really cute boys and giggling. A little time after that I see Daichi and his two parents; his mother was trying to smooth his hair back even more than it already is while his father was trying to get her to stop. After that, Manjyome shows up, about five servants carring his bags.

I feel a tap on my arm. I turn to see my mother standing next to me, her arms folded behind her and her feet tipping her back and forth on the red sneakers she loves to wear. "Hey Judai" she says. She sounds much younger than she normally does when we're together. It's like some bad habit of hers, to look and sound young when we're out together where there are strangers around. I don't understand why, but I think it's to fool people into assuming we're something like brother and sister.

My mother sits down next to me. "I haven't seen Ryo since we got here" she says. She smiles. "That must be a good thing."

I smile. "If you say that, you'll jinx us."

My mom knows about what happened yesterday, when Ryo showed up unannounced at our apartment. She told me that she was proud of me, but that still didn't help me feel any better than I did.

"I don't get it" I whisper to myself.

"Don't get what?" I look at my mother, then look back at the ground.

"I don't get why I still feel horrible about what I did. It was the right thing and probably should have happened much earlier in our relationship, but I...I still feel..."

"You still feel like it was obliged to the person you love? Even if the relationship has gone so sour that you're not even sure whether you should stick to it or just throw in the towel?" I nod my head. "Judai, first love is not something you can move on from in just one night. Especially if you and your other had shared something sacred." Mom looks down, blushing. "You never forget your firsts, you know."

I nod. "I can understand that."

Mom pats my back. I look at her. She holds out an envelope. I take it. "What is it?"

My mom winks. "Something you would really, really like."

The boat whistle sounds off. My mother gives me a hug. "You need to go, Judai." She backs off and plays with some of my hair. "Promise to e-mail or text or whatever me?"

I nod. I give my mother another hug. "I promise Mom." She kisses the top of my head, then pushes me off. I smile up at her. She and I both know that if I don't get on that boat now, I'm going to be left behind. I sprint to the boarding board thing and get in line.

Once I'm on the ship, I run to the already-crowded deck and stand at the far back. I can't see my mom, so I can't really give her another goodbye. I look at the envelope in my hands. I guess no time like the present, eh? The envelope rips open and I pull out another piece of paper. It's a picture. I can tell even though the back is to me. I blink. I pull out the picture and look at the front.

I smile. My mom did have other pictures of my father. This one is the three of us, I'm sitting on my father's shoulders, eating ice cream, a big blob of it sitting in my father's black mane of hair. He's looking up at me and my mother is laughing.

I place the picture against my chest and smile. "Thanks Mom" I whisper.

**Sho's POV**

My mother sits next to me on the couch. She plays with the telephone. "I just wish you had a few more days notice."

I shrug. "It probably wouldn't have changed my mind."

My mother nods. "But this is a giant decision forced to made in a few hours."

I look up at my mom. "You've probably made even more split-decision ones."

My mother smiles. "I guess. But even then, I knew one-hundred percent what I wanted out of my life." My mother closes her eyes. "I knew I wanted to marry your father; I knew I wanted to marry him; I knew that it would be just mean to Ryo to make him an illegitemate child; I knew that that having the public love your stories was one of your dreams."

I blink. "Your split decisions were some of your best, though."

My mom laughs. "Maybe." She looks at me. She leans down and kisses my forehead then brings me into a hug. "I'm glad to have you back home, Sho."

I hug her back. "I'm glad to be back, Mommy."

* * *

_Tell me if you saw that._

_Oh, and those of you who brought up the subject in your reviews, I just need to tell you a few things: _

_1) Sho was ALWAYA going to meet K.C.'s father. That was part of the plot from the second chapter. The whole thing with Judai's father was something that evolved from almost nothing, other than his relationship with his mother and his relationship with Ryo._

_2) You guys honestly didn't think that K.C. was Kaiba's daughter? I was worrying that I had made it almost painfully obvious. I mean, when you first meet her, Sho says that she looks just like him. And her name is K.C. I'm not saying those of you who said they were surprised are a little slow or something, I'm just saying I'm surprised..._

_Anyway..._

_Mika._

_Later!_

_2 chapters!_


	19. the meaning of the words I LOVE YOU

_Yay! It's the chapter I've been waiting for! It's the Ryo chapter! YAY! WAHOO! _

_And more happy news: I'm at OBX. And if you know what that stands for, you totally rock: )_

_Well...now that it is four minutes to three in the morning, I guess I should get off the damn computer. That would be smart._

_OOH! HEROES!_

ac-the-brain-supreme does not own Yugioh GX. I think she has ADD though...

* * *

**Ryo's POV**

I should probably start off with this: I am not a bad person. I'm not saying your impressions are wrong, there have been points in my life where I have been a total and complete jerk-off. If I can admit it, then you know I can understand that. But even in those moments, I can stand my ground and say I am not a bad person.

At least not in my eyes.

Maybe I should tell you when this all began, so I can make things easier for you.

My story starts before I was born, when I was a nine-month-old fetus in my mother's belly, unknowingly traveling to Las Vegas and to a drive-in chapel because my parents couldn't bump the date for the chapel up. They didn't want their first child to be a bastard child. For that I am thankful for.

What I am not thankful for is some of their methods of raising. My mother was still extremely young when I was born, only a few months older than I am right now. She may have been prepared in financial and physical senses of the words "mature" and "secure", but the emotional was still a little...I don't want to say lacking but she was a little more self-absorbed when I was still very young. She loved me, I don't doubt that. She loved me with all her heart and all her soul, but young brides and young mothers tend to be a little worse off with their first child.

Then Sho was born and I was temporarily pushed into the shadows.

My mother, mostly, paid attention to Sho. She was so ecstatic with her new son. Maybe it was the idea that Sho could have at one point been a girl, but decided at almost the last minute of his early development that he was going to be a boy. Maybe it was because a month and a half before Sho was born, her older sister died. Maybe she always preferred Sho. I don't know what her reasons were, but my mother had the atmosphere of loving Sho more than me.

Despite what you might expect, this didn't bring hostility or resentment to my baby brother. No, I loved him from the time I found out I was going to have a baby brother. And even if I didn't have my mother's love, I had my brother's. It was almost extraordinary. When I was in his room, he never cried out once. I was the first person he walked to. Instead of crawling into our parents' room, like most kids would have done, Sho came into my room when he was scared at night. I was the one he always came to for help. Me. Not mom, not dad; me.

Then, I turned ten and I discovered sex.

Again, this is due to my mother's horrible attention span. Her horrible attention span when it came to me, mind you.

I can remember the day well: my mother was cooking with the "help" of Sho--he was eight so he couldn't do much--and I had snuck onto my father's work computer. I got on the Internet and started playing on it when I came to a sight where the opening page was a pretty lady with no top. I was both horrified and interested. I couldn't believe that a girl could be so different from a boy. Then my mom called for me and I closed the window down before she saw what I was looking at. But I never forgot.

And that was when my obsession started.

When I became old enough, I would walk down to the public library to look up things like the pictures on the website. Erotic reading material, _Playboy_ magazines, pictures of half-evolved humans; I didn't care what it was, as long as the subject was naked enough to turn me on.

Mind you, by this time I was twelve.

I understood that this was all wrong. I should have been looking at this kind of stuff. I probably shouldn't even be well-versed enough to understand what terms like _bisexual_ meant and the what significance of 69 was. All I should have known about sex at that time was what all the other twelve-year-olds knew: that it happened between a man and a woman. At that time, I was trying to quit what I had so easily become addicted to, but vices are some of the things that can never leave us. It could have been because of my obsession at the time that I hit puberty at an early age...or, what is documented as an early age.

Puberty always happened to me at night. Even on nights that I hadn't looked at any pictures or read any erotic stories, I would get hard. And God were my erections annoying. If I had already fallen asleep, they would wake me up and if I was awake, they would keep me awake. Early on, I would just wait until they went away. But after a month of hard-ons every night, they would be around for longer periods of time. I guess you can guess what I did to get rid of them.

It was around this time that I made Sho stay out of my bed. Not that I didn't want him to keep sleeping with me when he was scared, I loved it; the only problem was that during one very embarrassing event, when he had hugged me, I got probably the worst erection I probably ever had up to that point. I almost frightened him when I pushed him out of my bed. When he tried to get back in, I pushed him back out and told him to grow up and sleep in his own bed. Sho did as he was told and, once I was sure he was in his room, I got up and locked my door.

That door's been locked ever since.

Pretty soon, getting rid of my problems didn't do anything, so I had to go looking for other people to do it for me. Thankfully, I had received my father's genes and was over five-foot-ten by the time I was in seventh grade. And I apparently looked older than I really was; high school girls flocked to me, flirted with me, did whatever they thought was going to get me to go out with them. Some of them got their wish, and I had some relief.

Women started to get...boring after a while, though. They all started to look the same: same blonde or brown hair, same brown or blue eye color, same everything. That's what attracted me to Pippa. She was beautiful, but in a foreign sort of way. Dark curly hair and bright, nearly pink lilac eyes; she looked like a china doll and I thought she was perfect.

But, as stated before, bad habits die hard. And even though I went into the relationship with the desire to know more about her and to have an actual girlfriend, I ended up trying to use her and frightening her away from me and from Sho, who was starting to make friends with her.

After Pippa, I got sick of girls pretty quickly, and I figured that this was a time to save myself and others from disease. And for a month I could. I honestly thought that I was cured of my addiction...but it was just in remission; looking for something new to get me excited about. And up to the present, that thing became boys. Lots and lots of handsome boys.

All through my first year at Duel Academy, I was praying on boys from all years, from all dorms. Surprisingly, a lot of the boys I went to school that with that year had liked the idea of sleeping with another boy. Or at least had played with it enough to try it out. It didn't matter what the case was. For a while, as long as I got what I want, then I was happy.

Then it was my second year. The year I met _him_, my one and only love.

Fubuki Tenjoin.

He was handsome and energetic, hard to catch. I had to step up my game to even get him to agree to a date. He was smooth and drove my emotions wild. From that first date, all I could think about was my sweet Fubuki, with his soft and silky hair, his flawless skin, his long legs and tight ass; he was absolutely perfect. And..for the first and only time in my life...I was...in love.

I planned to tell him that. I made sure the moment was perfect; picnic by the ocean, a clear and starry night, the two of us alone. All that was really missing was the sappy music and the black-and-white coloring. But even with those factors missing, I still held him close, I still whispered in his ear what I truly felt about him.

And he pulled away from me and ran away.

I only saw him once after that, when I was leaving one of my classes, we saw each other in the hallway, but he just turned from me and ran away. Then he was gone, taken by the darkness and away from me.

I can't tell you how much pain I felt after that. But, it wasn't just emotional pain. For three weeks after Fubuki le--...dissappeared, I had this _pain_ in my chest. I actually went to the nurse, afraid that I was going to have a heart attack or something. The nurse said that I was the picture of health. I knew that couldn't be true, though. Someone who had perfect health wouldn't have this constant pain in their chest. They wouldn't be a nervous wreck whenever they listened to a certain song on the radio. They wouldn't cry at night. They wouldn't feel like the world ended.

Over this past break, Makoto made a comment about me being a bastard. Though I'm sure my bastard-ness started long before, I know for a fact that the sorrow that was killing me inside had transformed into rage and a general hatred towards anything related to love.

Now that my brief history has been spelled out for you, I guess you would rather enjoy my telling you what you truly want to hear: why I'm with Judai and why I'm being hateful towards the brother I would have, and still would have, given up my life for.

Well, that begins at Judai's entrance exam. The spunk he showed then was impressive. I was more interested in his energy than I was in his duel. If you've ever seen Judai duel in person, actually witnessed it firsthand, then you would agree with me that it is a real heart-stopping show. The twists and turns are better than anything you could find in a mystery novel. He got my blood running and my mind racing. He confused me and made me understand. He was handsome and giddy and interesting.

He was like my dear Fubuki.

I hadn't completely thrown out the idea of going out with Judai, but I had pushed it to the back of my mind. I doubt he had any sort of feelings for men. But...there was still something about him...the way he smiled and laughed that somehow gave me thoughts otherwise.

And every teenager has to go through the awkward, "Oh my God, am I gay?" stage.

And, most importantly, he was like my Fubuki.

But still, I didn't really decide until after my duel with him. I won, of course, but how he reacted was so different from how people normally react. He enjoyed it, in a sense. He thought it had been fun to challenge the "King of Duel Academy." He had liked getting his nice ass handed to him.

He also had a kind of liking towards me. I know he respected me, but what I'm talking about is something more. Like he was infatuated with me.

I say infatuated because there is no such thing as "love at first sight." I believe in "infatuation at first sight" and I believe that infatuation leads to love. And infatuation is always better than nothing.

So, about a week after that duel, I asked Judai out. He accepted, of course. You can probably map out the relationship up to this point with some accuracy. I actually treated him pretty well, if you can believe it. I treated him like I did Fubuki; like he was a treasure. It wasn't until after Fubuki came back that I started acting like the bitter person I have been cast as. And that was for a few reasons.

One reason was that Fubuki was back and I had a boyfriend. Sure, he didn't know about it at the time--he was in a damned coma--but it wouldn't be long until he woke up and decided that I was better off without him. So, since Judai was so much like Fubuki, I decided to use the same trick that got Fubuki to run away. Unfortunately, incredible imitations are never as good as the original. So when I told Judai that I loved him--an almost outright lie--he just hugged me and told me that he loved me too.

The second reason was born from the reason one: I had lied to someone I respected and told them something that should never be lied about.

The third reason had to do with Sho. I had figured out after Fubuki returned that he loved Judai. I had also figured out that Sho belonged with Judai more than I did. But even if I dumped Judai instead of telling him that I loved him, what would that do to Sho. He didn't know, but Judai's reaction would have been an obvious sign that something bad had happened. Not only that, but other ex's of mine who had become friends with Sho left him alone. He hadn't liked anyone I dated in the past, so having Judai depressed and ignoring him...that would just crush my poor little brother.

Besides, Judai was like my Fubuki. I couldn't let him go.

So, instead of being happy with the one I love, I was stuck in a dead-end realtionship with someone who should've been with my little brother, who would have treated them better and actually loved them.

My one question to the universe is "Why?" Why did you make me a sex addict? Why did you take my Fubuki from me? Why did you not help me realize that Sho liked Judai earlier? Why have you been so cruel to me and everyone surrounding me? What is your reason?

Does it have to do with my person? My character?

Do you think I'm...a bad person?

( **It's Just Not Fair** )

I'm glad this is my last year at Duel Academy. I love the place, it has taught me many things about dueling, but it feels like this past two years have brougt me nothing but grief. I can't wait until I'm a pro and can make a name for myself. Then I can control what's going on around me.

This and other things are flying through my mind, I walk up to my dorm room door, not expecting it to already be open. Not only is it open, though. The door is wide open, like if someone has already gone in there. Instantly, I get angry. Only three people have keys to my room: myself, Judai, and the dorm head. That means that someone had either broken into my room or someone really wants to see me.

I walk up and through the door, barking, "What are you doing" before I could even tell who was there.

The brunette that was in there squeaked and turned to me at a lightning-fast speed. I instantly regretted yelling like I did. I didn't even need to hear that sweet voice to know that it was Fubuki in my room. My face caught fire and I knew I was blushing. Fubuki smiled shyly. "H-Hey there, Ryo" he greeted. His hands were behind his back. I could tell they were playing with something.

I puffed up my chest and raised my chin, trying to regain my composure but probably coming off as looking stupid and cold. "What are you doing in here, Fubuki?"

Fubuki's smile dissappeared almost instantly. He looked away. "I got in here with the key you gave me."

That didn't explain my first question, but what I asked didn't matter right now. "You still have it?" I ask. "I thought you lost it when you were captured."

Fubuki is smiling again, looking down at the ground. "No. I always held onto it. Even after being brainwashed, I knew that this was something special. I just didn't know what it went to, though."

My heart cracks and crumbles. Fubuki begins to walk out. I won't allow him, though. I take his arm and pull him to me.

I feel my breath hitch. The world spins and I'm walking off the boat second year. I'm sixteen, bored with the world, and looking for someone to lighten up the world. And, just like that, Fubuki came running by, not even noticing me. That day replays fifty times in my mind in the ten seconds we stand so close together. So close, that I can smell the cologne he uses.

I let go of Fubuki's wrist. Fubuki still can't leave, though. I always promised myself that if I got another chance with Fubuki, I would never let him go. So, I place my hands at the small of his back and pull him even closer to me. My nose is in his silky hair.

_"I love you, Fubuki. I love you, I love you, I love you."_

"What are you doing here?" I whisper.

Fubuki melts into the mold of my body. He sighs. "You have all the pictures of us together. I just...thought that since...y'know, you and Judai..."

I nuzzle Fubuki's skull. "That whole relationship was a mistake."

"That's a little harsh" Fubuki whispers. I smile. Oh, Fubuki, you're the only one that can make me smile so genuinely.

"I went out with him because he reminded me of you." There, he knows. Maybe that will bring him back forever? "I missed you so much Fubuki. I thought I was going to die."

Fubuki starts to shake. I pull away a little. He looks up into my eyes, and I see the terror and relief that I saw when he found out about me and Judai. "Don't say that." Fubuki covers his ears. "Don't say that. Please, don't ever say that!" Fubuki burried his head in my chest. "It's your fault, Ryo. If you hadn't told me you loved me, I never would have gone to Daitokuji and I never would have been asked to go to the abandoned dorm and then Judai and you never would have happened and...and..."

I shove Fubuki away from me. "What the hell, Fubuki?" I shake him a little. "What's wrong with telling you I love you?"

Fubuki shakes his head. "I don't know! I love it but...but I hate it. I love you, but I don't want to be tied down! I don't like the idea of commitment. I want to be with you, but I don't want to!" Fubuki runs back into my arms, nearly making me topple over. "I don't understand what the hell is going on!"

I blink. Then I smile. Before I realize it, I'm chuckling. Once I realize I'm chuckling, I'm laughing so loudly that I can barely breathe. Fubuki's face, one of confusion and offense, makes it even harder to stop laughing. Fubuki starts to beat on my chest. "Stop laughing at me! I don't like you laughing at me! Stop it right now!"

I take Fubuki's wrists and tug him towards me. Our lips meet and all the bad things that have happened between us is gone. Fubuki never ran away from my confession and I never moved on. I pull away, a smile on my face. Fubuki stares up at me, looking adorably like a little puppy.

"Fubuki" I say, "we're seventeen--"

"I'm still sixteen."

I smile. "Fine, you're sixteen, I'm seventeen. We're not even old enough to get married. We're supposed to be afraid of commitment. We're supposed to want to have a loose leash. We're supposed to want to live a real life and fulfill our dreams."

"But...but you said you loved me" Fubuki said.

I nod. "I did say that. I said that everyday since you left. If you want, I'll say it everyday until the day I die. But 'I love you' doesn't mean 'let's elope' or whatever you thought I meant. When I told you I loved you, I meant it exactly like that: I love you."

Fubuki blinks, then looks slighted. It's fake, I can tell. "Well, if that's what you meant, then why didn't you keep me from running away?"

I laugh and pull him to me again. I place sweet kisses on Fubuki's forehead.

**Judai's POV**

My heart is going to die. I can tell. It's never hurt so badly before like it is now.

My relationship with Ryo didn't mean anything. I was only a replacement for Fubuki. He doesn't love me. He loves Fubuki.

I use my hand to prop myself off the wall. I growl when I look at Ryo's open door. That bastard. He played me. He used me. I didn't mean anything to him when he meant everything to me. You bastard. You bastard.

"You bastard!" I shout as I kick the wall next to Ryo's door. "I never want to see you ever again!" And before anyone can come out and see what's going on, I'm out of the Obelisk Blue dorm.

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_Psst...two chapters left..._


	20. swimmingly

_This is pretty short. _

_Well, thank you insomnia! I got this done in just one night and one morning. HAHA! And I'm leaving this awesome place (OBX) tomorrow, so it's pretty good that I finished and published this today. (Happy clap)_

_OOH! I have a new story. (READER: another one? ((eye roll)) ) Yes, I have another one. And it's Heroes, so if you like that show, check it out. Please?_

_Well...not much to say...sooo...ENJOY!_

**ac-the-brain-supreme does not own Yugioh GX. And she's not yet dead.**

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I don't know where I'm going, becaues I don't care. I have never felt this depressed in...well, ever. Well, finding out your first boyfriend and the person you gave your virginity to didn't see your relationship as anything other than a rebound for the person they really love would do that to you, I assume. I sigh. I wonder where I am. A quick survey shows that I am in one of the hallways of the school building. Where, exactly, I don't know. Again, I didn't care where I was walking.

I feel something rub against my leg. I smile when I see that ball of fat and fur that is Pharaoh the cat rub against me. I pick up the fat ball, rubbing his head as he sits in my arms. I lean against the wall. "You love me, don't you Pharaoh?" Pharaoh purrs and meows, making for an interesting sound.

I hear a door open. I look around the corner and see the door that just opened. Out comes voices before I see the people attached to them.

"Thank you so much for not being upset." That's Mrs. Marafuji.

"It's no problem at all." That's Samejima-sensei. "We're glad that Sho has chosen opportunities that could lead to a more fulfilling life."

"Yes." That's Daitokuji-sensei. "A life of only one passion is no life at all."

"Well, still, I wish we had given enough time beforehand. I mean, Sho had to make such a big decisions in one day." Mrs. Marafuji pauses. She seems to do this for effect. "He was so torn. I've never seen him so...unconfidant of a decision he's made."

Is this seriously Sho's mom?

"Well, Sho had been a good student for the time he's been here." Another pause. "And we will wish him the best of luck."

"Thank you. I will make sure he hears this."

I take a look around the corner to see Mrs. Marafuji bow to Samejima-sensei and Daitokuji-sensei. Then, she walks away. Samejima-sensei offers to escort her, which Mrs. Marafuji accepts with an innocent smile. As the two walk away, Pharaoh jumps out of my arms and waddles over to his master. I round the corner to reveal myself. "Oh, hello Pharaoh" Daitokuji greets his cat. He looks over and sees me. "I guess you were eavesdropping."

"It seems to be the only way I learn about my friends anymore." I walk up to Daitokuji-sensei. "What's going on?"

Daitokuji places a hand on my shoulder. "Walk with me, Judai."

**Sho's POV**

Me and Makoto are spinning around like idiots. One reason is because she got to come with me to Duel Academy. I gave her a short tour while her and my father move out the things I left behind on the island. Well, my dad moved most of the stuff out. He wouldn't let Uncle Toru off the boat. I showed Makoto my old dorm rooms, the volcano--from as safe a distance as possible--the place where I met a vampire--she still doesn't believe me though, even though I showed her my scar. She saw the outside of the Obelisk dorms and some of the school building.

Now, we're spinning like stupid idiots on the docks. Samejima-sensei just left, telling me how proud he was. I told him I was keeping the blazer as a souvenir, and he said that was absolutely fine with him. All my stuff is on the boat and my mom is asking her brother-in-law that everything is just about ready. Makoto wants to get on board now, but I don't want to. "I want to be here just a little bit longer."

Makoto stares at me for a moment, but leaves without a word.

I take one last look at the island before me. So many memories are here. It's like graduation, but it's not. Nostalgia rushes through and makes my fingertips tingle. I remember the night that me and Judai ventured into the Abandoned Dorm. I remember the time we had a picnic by the ocean, just for the heck of it. I remember the times that Judai dueled, especially the time when we dueled together so that we could stay at the Academy. I wonder...would he and I have stayed friends if we had lost. I want to say that we probably won't. I want to say it, but I don't believe it.

I smile. I'm going to miss this place, I really am.

"Sho!" I look up to the deck. My mother and Makoto are standing up there. "Sho, Toru says that we're going to be leaving soon. You need to get on."

"Coming right up!" I tell her before running up the dock and onto the boat.

**Judai's POV**

My side aches and I can't catch my breath. My feet are tripping over everything and I have only the vaguest idea of where I am. But all I need to care about is where I'm going. All I need to care about is the docks and the boat that, hopefully, is still there.

Daitokuji told me everything. He told me that Sho was dropping out of Duel Academy and returning to the mainland permanently. He told me why, which so blew my mind that I could barely think afterwards. He told me that Sho was coming today to pick up some stuff that he hadn't brought home and so that his parents could speak to Samejima about his leaving. And he told me that this was probably the last day I had to make things up to Sho.

I see the docks. Finally. But, there is no boat there. I see Sho's boat, at least I assume it is his boat, maybe ten feet out. I glare at the boat. I have to talk to Sho. I need to tell him that I'm sorry. So, without breaking stride, I run up the dock and then launch myself into the salty waters of the ocean. As soon as I'm under water, I start kicking my legs and paddling my arms. Admittedly, I'm not as good a swimmer as one who had voluntarily jumped into open water should probably be. But I don't give a damn!

**Sho's POV**

I walk back to the back deck where I can see Duel Academy. Mom and everyone else is having a small celebration for my return home. They say that it is called for, but I'd rather not attend. This is too sad an event.

I look down into the water. My brows draw together. Is there something in the water. Whatever it is, it can't swim very well. Of course, I guess I shouldn't be saying that since I'm pretty much afraid of swimming. I lean closer and squint at the thing swimming. My eyes widen. Oh my God. That's Judai.

He's shouting something. But...what is he saying?

**Judai's POV**

"I'm sorry Sho!" I take a deep breath, then continue. "I'm sorry for everything I've done. I'm sorry for not getting your opinion on my relationship with your brother. I'm sorry that I didn't even bother to tell you!

"I'm sorry that I had ignored how you felt about me and my attempts to avoid you. I'm sorry that I ignored my own feelings. I'm sorry that I even went out with your brother! He's a big jerk who shouldn't even be given the time of day.

"I'm sorry for all those times I kissed you, even though I really, really liked those times, I know you were creeped out so I'm saying sorry for creeping you out, I guess." I shake my head. I don't think I'm making any sense. "I'm sorry for lying and I'm sorry for pushing you away. I'm sorry for having sex in your room. I'm sorry for all the times I brought Ryo into our room. I'm sorry for...for... Aw, hell! I'm just sorry! And...and...I think..." I look up at where Sho was standing. Was. He's not there anymore.

I stop swimming. I blink. Then I look at the water I'm treading. "I think I'm in love with you" I whisper.

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_one more chapter!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!_


	21. I love you

_This is it, people. This is the final chapter. The last thing you will ever see added onto this story. _

_Hah...this is probably one of the most successful stories I have ever written. Thanks to you, my loyal fans, this story, which started out as a lowly one-shot, has grown into a 21 chaptered story. One with amazing plot twists and a plot and original characters whose purpose sort of makes sense. _

_So I thank you, my fans, for reading this story and supporting it with your reviews. I love you all! _

_Huggles!_

_Now, the final chapter...BEGINS!!!_

**ac-the-brain-supreme does not own Yugioh GX. She does own a pair of headphones that should seriously be replaced.**

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I tread water for a few minutes. I close my eyes. I should be going back to the island. Being out here could kill me. If one of the teachers seeing me out here doesn't. But I can't move. I have no desire to, anyway. I raise my head into the air and take a deep breath. It was going to be a long swim back to the island.

I turn around and see that no one is at the pier. Somehow that doesn't surprise me. None of the teachers know that I came to the pier except for Daitokuji. And I have a feeling that he knows why. I close my eyes for a moment. Kami, this was a stupid idea. I start to swim freestyle back to shore, thinking this over and over again. It really was a stupid idea. Sho's probably so mad at me, and he doesn't know that I broke up with Ryo. I doubt no one outside of the Obelisk dorm knows about me and Ryo's breakup.

I hear a shriek. I stop and look behind me. Makoto is standing at the deck, freaking out. There's a rope that hangs down off the railing. At the end, in the water, is a life preserver. I squint, then see that there is something connected to the life preserver. After a moment, I see why Makoto is shrieking and causing a scene on the deck of the boat. I turn around completely and swim as fast as I can to the life preserver. "Sho!" I reach the life preserver and hold onto it, staring into the eyes of the boy who just jumped off a boat to meet me. "Sho, what are you doing?"

Sho smiles at me. Somehow, that seems like the most beautiful thing to me, his smile. Sho cocks his head to the side. Damn it! How come he looks so cute? "Trying to listen to you. I didn't get to hear the last part."

"Because you were getting this for me?" I tap the life preserver.

Sho nods. I lean closer to Sho. He senses this and opens his eyes. "Aniki" he whispers.

I smile and hum. "Heh. I love it when you call me that." I rub our noses together. Then, I lean my forehead against his. His eyes are half-open and shimmering with joy. I lift my head and brush my lips against Sho's forehead. "I broke up with your brother."

Sho backs away a little. "What? Aniki? But...but why? I thought the two of you were happy together!"

I blink. "Would I be making out with you if I truly loved your brother?"

Sho is silent. "No. But what are you doing here then?"

I shake my head. I lean close to him again and lay a light kiss on his soft, sweet lips. "Because," I answer, "I love you."

Sho doesn't react. He just...floats there, holding onto the life preserver. I blink. "Sho?" I say. I poke him. "Sho?"

"Do you really mean it?" My eyes widen. "Do you honestly believe in what you're saying? Would you swear your life on that statement?"

Without thinking, I nod. "Yes! Yes, of course I would."

"But you loved Oniisan--"

"I fell out of love with your brother a long time ago. I was only holding onto him these past few weeks because I didn't know how to break up with him." I place my hand on Sho's. "Ever since our fight, I've been confused about what the hell is going on around me. My heart was changing, I was learning new things about everyone around me. I didn't know what I should do." I look up to the deck. The noise up there seems far away. "I mean, this isn't like a game of duel monsters. I can't just draw a card that will make this problem go away. I've had to make decisions that I thought I would never make." I squeeze Sho's hand. "And I'm very proud of them. Despite what others may think of them, I am as proud as I could ever be of what I have done."

"Aniki" Sho whispers. He smiles and leans closer to me. "I love you too, Aniki." Then, light as a butterfly's landing, Sho's lips press against mine. I blink and blush. That was the first time Sho's ever kissed me. I begin laughing.

"What's so funny?" Sho asks. He's about ready to laugh too.

I nuzzle his nose again. "You are."

"How am I funny?" Sho pouts. I reach over to him and pull him into a hug. "Aniki!"

I kiss his forehead. "Do you know that you're so adorable when you pout." I nuzzle him for a moment. "You should pout more often."

Sho laughs. For the next few minutes, the people on the deck of the ship look for ways to save us from drowning in the water below. Thanks to the life preserver, we were never in any danger. But those few minutes were almost magical. For all that time, all Sho and I did was look into each other's eyes. Somehow, all the misgivings are forgotten when we were together. And when we were pulled up to the ship deck and given towels and yelled at for being stupid and doing something life-threatening, we ignored the others around us. Because at that moment, we were together.

And this time, nothing was going to keep us apart.

**Sho's POV**

"Hey, Sho?" I'm being poked at in the back. "Hey, Sho? Are you awake?"

"I am now" I say. I crack an eye open. The first thing I see is an alarm clock with red blinking numbers. Why is Judai up this early? It's before the alarm is supposed to go off. I grumble and try to bury my head into the pillow. Judai is persistent, though.

"But I have something to ask you!" Judai whines. He nuzzles the back of my neck. His arms wrap around me and sit on my stomach. "It's a real important question!"

I sigh. I turn around in his arms, twisting the blankets in my legs as I do. "What is it?" I ask.

Judai leaves a little peck on my cheek. "You're adorable."

"That's not a question."

"That wasn't my question."

"Then what's your question?"

"You don't seem very enthusiastic about it."

"Why should I?"

"Because it's an important question."

"How importnat?"

"The most importnat."

"Well then, if it's that important, then ask me."

Judai smiles. "What's the meaning of life?"

...Oh Lord. "Are you serious?"

"Not really."

I blink. "So you woke me up for that?"

"No."

"Then what the hell was that about?"

"I don't know. I just wanted to ask you that question."

"Well good for you. I'm going back to you."

"But I still have a question for you!"

I sigh. "Ask me then already!"

Judai combs my hair with his fingers. I lean into them, enjoying the feel of his fingernails funning over my skull. "Do you know what today is?"

It takes me barely a minute to answer. "It's our anniversary."

"Our fifth anniversary!" Jusai kisses my forehead. "And do you know what people traditionally get for their others on the fifth anniversary?" I blink, wondering what the answer is. I honestly have no idea, so I tell him so. Judai laughs. "The answer is wood and silverware."

"Wood? What kind of gift is a log?"

Judai laughs again. He pulls away a little. A little. Just enough so that he can kiss me on the mouth. When he stops, his lips are still right on top of mine. He hums. "There are many types of wood."

"Really? What do you mean?"

I should have really seen what was coming. Judai, at that moment, pounced on me. I squeak as he wraps his arms around me and starts to kiss me again. I kiss him back and...well...you can imagine what happens next.

* * *

_Well...that got pervy towards the end. _

_So that's the final chapter. I have to tell you, it didn't ended the way I expected it to. Must be because I'm up at 4 in the morning writing it. (sigh). _

_Well, like I said before, I want to thank you for supporting this fic and telling me how much you love it. I hope to see you in my other fics and the new one that's about to come out. So long!_

---ac-the-brain-supreme


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